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My name is Matthew Cohen and this past May I donated a portion of my Bar Mitzvah gifts to the Abayudaya Philanthropic Fund. All of my life I have realized the importance of Tzedakah. I live in a Jewish family and have been involved in the Jewish community. My mom and dad have always kept a Jewish home and worked hard to fill our lives with Jewish values. My brother and I have been lucky enough to be able to attend Jewish day school our entire life. My teachers work hard to teach me about the value of Tzedakah -giving back to the world. It is my responsibility to give back to the world and help people in need. In becoming a Bar Mitzvah, I realized that I could give a lot more. I felt good that I could give to the Abayudaya community in Uganda.
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I learned about the Abayudaya from my friend Igaal. His family came to the United States and settled in Los Angeles. His father was in rabbinic school here for five years, so he could go back to Uganda as an official rabbi. We became friends in 7th grade and he told us about his life in Uganda. Over time, I learned more about the needs of this Ugandan community. I was thinking about my Bar Mitzvah project and I realized I could give a donation to help my friend's community. It makes me feel good to help a Jewish community on the other side of the world. I would love to visit Igaal and his village and see what I helped to build. I hope other fortunate people would follow my idea to help this small community in Uganda. I look forward to keeping in touch with my friend and learning more about Jewish life in Uganda.
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