Two anniversaries for the price of one

JUF Young Families recently celebrated two happy events at once. On Jan. 28, it held a Birthday Bash at Kohl Children’s Museum to honor both the 18th birthday of PJ Library and the 10th birthday of jBaby Chicago. With full access to the museum, 150 families–some 360 people–enjoyed birthday cake, decorated giant birthday cards, made goody bags, met their favorite PJ Library characters and listened to stories!

Earlier, JUF Young Families honored jBaby Parent Ambassadors and PJ Library Parent Connectors at a private reception for their dedication over the past decade to fostering relationships with families, and engaging them in their neighborhoods and larger community.

Jewish kids and Jewish books: A love story

PJ Library turns 18

Once upon a time, Jewish picture books were rare– It Could Always Be Worse , Herschel and the Hanukkah Goblins , and a few others were about it. Many Jews in jammies had no bedtime stories about kids like them. Then, a Jewish prince said, “I will send Jewish books to children across the land!” And, in 2005, the Harold Grinspoon Foundation created PJ Library.

What began with mailing free Jewish books to 200 families in Massachusetts now sends books to hundreds of thousands of children in 35 countries every month. Additionally, the PJ Our Way project allows pre-teens to choose their own Jewish chapter books.

“These books are accessible nuggets of Jewish wisdom,” said Dara Cameron, program associate at JUF Young Families. “We hope they connect families and keep our culture alive.”

Chicago joined the program in 2009, and soon had more than 5,000 subscribers. Today, PJ Library Chicago sends out 9,000 books each month. Much of this success is due to the efforts of Connectors who invite families to join PJ Library and attend its events.

Cameron began with the program as a Connector. To her, the program reveals how each small gesture–each book, event, and friendship–builds to a substantial change in a child’s life.

“It’s about low-barrier, grassroots engagement on a hyper-local level,” she explained. “We find Jewish families where they are, and we meet them there.” She fondly recalls a child at a PJ Library event who realized aloud, “We’re all Jewish!”

A good library gathers people as well as books. As significant as the more-than-a-million books PJ Library Chicago has distributed are the 23,500 subscribers it has reached over the years, and the thousands who have attended its events since 2009.

Since then, it has added Shabbat Across Chicago, a family camp, volunteer opportunities, neighborhood meet-ups, and events and resources for adults.

The moral of the story? Give a kid a book, and their families will read happily ever after.

Building the village it takes to raise a child

jBaby Chicago turns 10

Becoming a new parent is both exhilarating and exhausting, but it can also be surprisingly isolating. You know there must be others going through what you are, but how can you find them when you need them most?

JUF knows it takes a village to raise a child, so we built one. jBaby Chicago provides support and community connection for parents raising Jewish babies–from zero to two years–in the Chicagoland area.

jBaby was born in Chicago in March 2014 with three Ambassadors, and by January 2015, it expanded to the suburbs with three additional team members. Over the past 10 years, the program has employed 70 Ambassadors, who welcome new Jewish and interfaith families through coffee dates, swag bags, playgroups, and other programs. With their help, jBaby has engaged with more than 3,000 families over the past decade.

“I became a jBaby Chicago Parent Ambassador to connect families to the same type of supportive community I found when I joined jBaby,” said Anna Baron. “I’ve also enjoyed attending–and building–events around Jewish holidays and values. Even as a toddler, my daughter has an amazing community to share the joy of Judaism with. I joined for her to meet others her age, but I also found new friends!”

One of jBaby’s goals is to get new parents out of the house, so they can meet the other members of their village. Signing up plugs them into the jBaby community of new parents–and a world of classes, playgroups, and meetups, and even volunteer opportunities.

As much as parents love their babies, jBaby also recognizes the necessity of “me time” to recharge. So, it also offers events, classes, parents’ nights out, and other resources for adults to learn from experts and each other.

JUF Young Families programs–PJ Library, jBaby, and JUF RightStart (vouchers for early-childhood programs)-are designed to bring families together. Together, we explore traditions, celebrate holidays, honor milestones, and build community. To learn more, visit juf.org/youngfamilies.