Jude Sugerman’s Bar Mitzvah

Hello! My name is Jude Sugerman. I am in 7th grade at The Brandeis School of San Francisco. I have been at Beth Sholom for my whole life (with a break). I’m very grateful for Beth Sholom welcoming me when we moved back across the bay. In the past year I’ve enjoyed going to shabbat school, and B'nai Mitzvah classes on Thursdays. In my free time I enjoy drawing maps, looking at maps, listening to music and playing video games (that usually involve maps).

My parsha is Vayishlach. This is the parsha in which Jacob famously wrestles with an angel and is renamed Israel. For my drash, I plan to focus on the part of the parsha that teaches us about forgiveness, because Esau forgives Jacob for the younger brother’s betrayal. I think that we should always forgive, no matter what, because in the end, we can learn from it.

I’m really looking forward to this week. So many friends and family have come into town for my bar mitzvah. I am particularly grateful to have my Granny from Zichron Yakov, my uncles and aunts from Zurich, New Hampshire, Boston, and Hawaii, and all of my cousins from around the country.  I also want to thank my parents for all they’ve done to make this possible.

I would like to thank Rabbi Russell for her guidance and wisdom throughout this journey, Randy Weiss for his weekly learning sessions, and all the Beth Sholom teachers for making my education and this community such a meaningful part of my life.