By Emily K. Alhadeff , Assistant Editor, JTNews
Uriel Cohen was substituting for a Sephardic Religious School class at the Stroum Jewish Community Center one day when, while reviewing the Shema prayer, he reached “…and you should write [these words] on your doorposts and your gates” — the origin of the mezuzah concept.
“We looked at the classroom door and there was no mezuzah,” he says.
Maybe they missed a door, he thought. But Cohen quickly realized that the Stroum JCC did not have a mezuzah on many of its doors.
“It’s a very serious problem,” he says.
The mezuzah, a small vertical container, often ornately or playfully designed, contains a parchment slip with two passages from the Shema (Deuteronomy 6:4-9 and 11:13-21). The mezuzah is traditionally affixed to doorframes in homes and Jewish buildings to remind Jews of their religion as they come and go.
According to the SJCC’s CEO, Judy Neuman, Cohen came to her and said, “I really think it would be great if you had a mezuzah on every single classroom door.” Although mezuzot are “sprinkled all through the J” and on the most prominent doorways, “because we have 92,000 square feet of space, it’s not practical to put them on every door,” Neuman told JTNews.
So Cohen took it upon himself to adorn the Mercer Island facility’s doorways.
“We supported a mitzvah opportunity of a young man who felt passionate,” says Neuman. The idea to place mezuzot on the children’s classroom doors “came from his own sense of Judaism, and I said, “˜Listen, it would be a great gift.’”
Once he had the go-ahead, Cohen started a blog and set up a PayPal account. The simple, clear Lucite mezuzot sell for $36 each. Starting in January, orders began to come — first for three mezuzot, then seven more in February, then 10 donated by a single donor, and then, to top the 10, another donor funded 11 more mezuzot in March. Cohen chose to start affixing mezuzot to the children’s classroom doors, because the mezuzah can be a learning tool.
The mezuzah initiative “was very much driven by him, and he went out and made it happen,” Neuman said. “It’s something that he should feel very proud of.”
On March 21, Rabbi Mark Spiro, Hebrew High’s managing director, gave an introductory lesson about the practical laws and the meaning of the mezuzah to Hebrew High students who chose to partake in the first installation at the JCC. Spiro said the levels of knowledge about the mezuzah varied among the students, who come from a range of backgrounds.
Cohen estimates he needs about 60 mezuzot altogether, but he doesn’t set an end date for the project. He also seems realistic about his own involvement in the collection. This senior at Mercer Island High School, who also attends Bellevue College’s Running Start program, will be shipping off to yeshiva in Israel after graduation.
Until then, Cohen runs the Jewish Student Union program at Mercer Island High and at Running Start, where a growing number of high school students choose to study. He also works at Island Crust Café and spends whatever free time is leftover studying at the Seattle Kollel.
“I’m very busy,” he said.
“Uriel is one of the best kids I’ve ever worked with in NCSY and JSU,” said Ari Hoffman, greater Seattle city director of the NCSY youth group.
Under Cohen’s leadership, Hoffman said the JSU has flourished. Cohen “gets it done officially and he gets it done well.” He managed the mezuzah project all on his own, from starting the website to fundraising.
After yeshiva in Israel, Uriel plans to attend Yeshiva University in New York. Hoffman informed JTNews that Cohen will receive “a massive scholarship” to the university based on his recommendation.
“He’s a dynamo,” Hoffman said. “I wish I could take more credit for him.”
To make a donation to purchase one of the mezuzot for the Stroum JCC, visit www.SJCCMezuzot.weebly.com.