Having the opportunity to work as an Early Childhood Jewish educator after covid, after war in Ukraine, while your own people is fighting for having the right to exist, living in a small Jewish community in Bucharest, Romania is nothing less then a miracle.
When the world is crumbling around us why would anyone bother to invest in Early Childhood Jewish Education in Europe?
I am the lucky one – a team of amazing Jewish early childhood education professionals decided, some years ago, my community deserves more than a past, it deserves a future. So they gave me, as a director and a founder of a Jewish kindergarten in Romania, a community- a community of kindergartens around Europe ( Sofia- Bulgaria, Budapest- Hungary, Warsaw, Krakow- Poland) that had similar history, struggles and dreams. They gave me education- by mentoring me and opening the world of education through the Reggio Emilia approach with a Jewish twist.
Today, meeting as a group of Jewish early childhood educators from Europe, walking in classrooms and hallways of Washington Hebrew Early Childhood Program and the St John’s kindergarten gave me hope. If we manage in my kindergarten to start to hear the voice of the kids, to make our Jewish values alive in every corner of our space, if we see the whole family as active members we will have a community of Jewish adults that have a sense of belonging to a community, that know that they are capable to solve problems and work together, for whom tikkun olam or doing a mitzvah are not just things you do on a holiday but is a way of living.
So thank you SOS international for trusting me and my kids and big family to give a hand in shaping our community ‘s future, and being always next to us guiding us on the right track. ~ Dalia Golda, Gradinita Ganeden, Romania, Bucharest.
