me feel like I was practicing the right
religion.” At Temple Beth Hillel-Beth El in
Wynnewood, Brandon Bowman went
through his own confirmation ceremony
a few months ago, too.

Temple Beth Hillel-Beth El is one of
the four Conservative synagogues that
partner with Lower Merion Area Hebrew
High. The post-B’nai Mitzvah program
offers a confirmation trip to Israel, and
Bowman and some of his friends decided
they would go on that trip together. His
parents, he said, also didn’t give him
much of a choice.

Bowman, a student at Radnor High
School, had never enjoyed Hebrew school
before, but LMAHH was different.

They learned about current events and
the weekly Torah reading, Bowman said.

High school programs usually offer more
flexibility than programs for younger
students, and LMAHH is no exception.

The students got to choose what they
wanted to spend the second part of the
day learning. Bowman often chose to
learn about Israel.

“Before my bar mitzvah, I did not
want to go to Hebrew school at all,”
Bowman said. “Then after my bar
mitzvah, I was still kind of the same until
Leah Isayev and her mother
Photo courtesy of Leah Isayev
Brandon Bowman (left) and his friends at the
Western Wall
Photo courtesy of Brandon Bowman
I started LMAHH. LMAHH was pretty
interesting. It wasn’t really traditional.

... When I got to LMAHH, the rabbis
and the people in charge there knew
that a teenager doesn’t want to come in
Sunday morning ... so they really had a
good lesson plan. They really benefited
us, motivating us to come and enjoy our
time there.”
Bowman now sits on the board of his
BBYO chapter and is working to start a
Jewish students club at his high school.

Leo Perlstein, a 10th grader at Harriton
High School, is just beginning his own
confirmation year at Har Zion Temple,
also through LMAHH. Both his older
sisters continued their Jewish education
after their b’not mitzvah, and he recog-
nized that there was more to learn about
Judaism beyond his bar mitzvah.

But, for him, the point isn’t confirma-
tion itself. He just sees that as a part of his
larger Jewish education.

“I’m always going to continue my
Judaism wherever I go and keep it with
me,” Perlstein said. “It’s good to be part
of that community and good to continue
being Jewish.” ❤
szighelboim@jewishexponent.com; 215-832-0729
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