Last Thursday was a very special day in Ari Panich’s life – and that of the 47 new friends he’s made on Midwest TJJ, NCSY’s summer trip to Israel for Jewish public school teens.

The group took time from their busy schedule to celebrate Ari’s bar mitzvah, the first in his family in three generations.

“It was an unbelievable experience,” says Ari, an incoming sophomore at Barrington High School in Illinois. “[It] was like watching someone else in a movie.”

Ari’s mother, Margarita Fliman, called it a “magnificent moment.”

“Having Ari’s bar mitzvah by the Kotel [was] a powerful proof of our Jewish heritage of perseverance, survival and triumph.”

Mrs. Fliman explains that Ari comes from a family with roots in Ukraine and Belarus.

“Our families survived the pogroms, Soviet camps, famine in Ukraine, [the] Holocaust, and finally the harsh realities of the Soviet living,” she says. “Ari’s bar mitzvah is in honor of all those family members who did not live long enough, or [did not have] any opportunity to have a bar mitzvah.”

Due to Covid, Ari, a former student at JFE, Midwest NCSY’s Hebrew school on the North Shore, was unable to have a bar mitzvah when he turned 13. But JFE staff told him it’s never too late.

And that’s when the idea to celebrate Ari’s bar mitzvah on TJJ was born. Several months ago, Ari began preparing for his special day with NCSY North Shore City Director Rabbi Jeremy Schaechter (l.), who also leads the Midwest TJJ bus.

And while Ari’s bar mitzvah was supposed to have been a small affair, with his parents, brother, and family in Israel participating, Rabbi Jeremy had a surprise for him – in the form of a large and unexpected group of friends.

“The entire TJJ Midwest group surprised me,” says Ari. “[They] all showed up at the Kotel.”

So far, Ari’s bar mitzvah has been the highlight of his TJJ experience. But he adds that the trip, as a whole, has given him a newfound connection to his Jewish roots.

“My favorite part [has been] seeing the holy sites,” he says. “When I saw the Western Wall and the ancient synagogues, chills went down my spine.”