Frum Girl Problems

Jenna McKenna and her husband Adam enjoying some family time with their eldest daughter.  

Never underestimate the power of community, especially when it includes a strong dose of humor. 

Jenna McKenna knew that was exactly what she and her friends needed back in 2014. They were a group of young Orthodox women, many of them fresh out of seminary. As they returned to their regular lives, they knew they needed each other and that connection. 

McKenna founded the private Facebook group FrumGirlProblems for just this reason. So these friends could share questions, stories, and tips for leading an observant life. 

McKenna, née Bazelon, grew up in a secular Jewish home in Highland Park. She is now the proud mother of three young children, living in Rogers Park with her husband Adam and working in human resources for a local Jewish school. 

Her journey to becoming more observant began in college and after graduating, she went to Israel to study in a yeshiva for a year. 

While in Israel, McKenna said, “I made a lot of really good friends, and we all became observant either a little bit before or during that year. After we left Israel, a lot of things came up, common questions among young women who were newly observant.” 

Much of the group is fairly international. Starting it “was just a really good way for us to not only stay in touch, but also to support each other about becoming observant and adjusting to our regular lives, but now as observant Jewish women.” 

McKenna said the group started as “a way to commiserate and share tips and ideas and just how we can make the transition smooth. We use a lot of comedic relief about things that were kind of hard, like keeping kosher at the workplace, and other things that were new for a lot of us, like keeping kosher at our parents’ houses. And it was just a way to have fun with it and make it a bit easier for all of us.” 

This group that began with 20-30 friends of McKenna’s from seminary, has now grown to over 20,000 followers. “The original group invited friends who it was relevant for and honestly within a couple of years there were thousands of people, and it just kept growing from there,” McKenna said. 

When McKenna first began the group, being a baal teshuvah—typically referring to a Jew from a secular or non-Orthodox background who becomes religiously observant—was a big part of the conversation. Yet over the years, McKenna said the membership has changed and now the group is made up equally of women who are new to leading an Orthodox life as well as the women who are what is commonly referred to as FFB, frum from birth. 

The questions and topics are varied and wide-ranging. It could be something as straightforward as how to keep your challah warm on Shabbat to more complicated topics like dealing with a non-observant family member. “It can be something as simple as what is the best sweater to wear with an A line skirt,” McKenna said. “Or conversations about everything from looking for wedding halls in Jerusalem to someone sourcing kosher food options for their stopover in Paris. It’s a great option for crowdsourcing within the community.” 

When McKenna began dating her husband, she shared a lot of their stories with the community. “I knew they would be so happy for me.” When she got engaged and everyone found out her name was going to be Jenna McKenna… that provided perhaps the biggest comedic relief of all. “I mean, you just can’t make it up,” she said, with a joyful laugh in her voice. 

For more information, look for #FrumGirlProblems on Facebook.