Twelve Acts of Kindness
A new Batmitzvah program will change the face of the simcha.
A new Batmitzvah program is launching in Melbourne in late January and it is taking the philanthropic approach and turning something of a festive celebration into an act of kindness through volunteering.
Natalie Hershan, Amanda Miller and Moran Dvir
As the year comes to a close, it can be easy to forget to look outside of ourselves and consider the harsher lives others around us might be leading. Ideologically, holidays and festivals are often times when we are encouraged to take on a cognitive approach of insight into the world around us, but modern life can cause us to lose track.
Twelve is an organisation started up by three experienced volunteers who saw that something might have been missing in the way Batmitzvahs are usually celebrated. It is a non-religious philanthropic initiative that invites participants to work with a diverse range of groups in need including young homeless people, poorer families and elderly people of all denominations and faiths.
The way it works is by grouping of twelve families and directing participants to be involved with numerous charities and outreach programs such as Oz Harvest, Koala Kids, C Care, Ardoch Youth Foundation, Jewish Care and Whitelion, just to name a few. AT present 32 families are involved.
With all the parties that occur during this time, it can be easy to forget what the year could be about. Twelve aims to approach this Jewish tradition in this modern context through a philanthropic lens, by facilitating joint volunteering programs that invite both parents and children to participate.
Twelve aims to provide a meaningful experience for both parent and child, by putting forward the message that giving doesn’t have to be something you can drop your child off to and tick a box, but it can take on a whole new meaning that starts a conversation and a dialogue within a family. This aims to get children to start thinking more deeply about what is going on in the world around them, such as noticing a homeless person on the street or thinking about the lives of families affected by poverty or illness.
Moran Dvir, one of the leaders and facilitators of the program had this to say:
‘Twelve is a unique a new Batmitzvah program that promises to give families an insight and experience into the joy of giving through hands on volunteering experiences’.
Twelve will begin its sessions in January 2015 and will hold monthly sessions on Sunday afternoons.
Moran Dvir, Amanda Miller and Natalie Hershan are the experienced volunteers running the program.
