With love and creativity, grandparents can build special relationships with their grandchildren-and leave an extraordinary legacy. The newly established GIFTS (Gratitude, Inspiration, Family, Tzedakah and Service) program provides the tools for grandparents to pass their Jewish values to their grandchildren. A key component of this initiative is the inaugural Jewish Grandparent Symposium, to be held Sunday, May 31. It will offer bubbes and zaydes an opportunity to explore grandparenting ideas and concerns.

H. Steven Moffic, M.D., an award winning ethicist, author and clinician, will provide the keynote address. He will explore the topic, “Cultivating Moral Potential in Our Grandchildren.”

Breakout sessions include Legacy: How to Share Your Family Story; Communication in the Age of Facebook; Embracing Your Special Needs Grandchild; Tears of Joy, Tears of Sorrow: Exploring Life Cycle Events; People of the Book: Using PJ Library to Connect; Walking on Eggshells: Intergenerational Conversations; The GIFT of Doing Good: Ideas to Engage your Grandchildren in Tzedakah; and Applying Our Jewish Tradition to Teach Modern Values.

The symposium is open to all grandparents and will be held at B’nai Jehoshua Beth Elohim, 1201 Lake Cook Road, Deerfield. The formal program is from 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. The cost is $18, which includes kosher breakfast and lunch.

GIFTS is supported by a generous grant from the Breakthrough Fund, an innovation of the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago, in partnership with Grandparents for Social Action and Interfaith Family/Chicago.

For information or to register, visit here , call 312-357-4960 or email [email protected] .