Kyra Goldman of Short Hills, New Jersey, celebrated her Bat Mitzvah on November 15, 2014. For her Mitzvah Project she chose two very worthwhile organizations.
Kyra has a passion for fitness, so she decided to raise money for the Lymphoma Research Foundation by holding Cycling for LRF. It was a fun-filled, non-competitive indoor cycling session at Flywheel Sports in Englewood, New Jersey. The Cycling for LRF classes are nationwide and offers survivors, family and friends an opportunity to cycle in honor and memory of those whose lives have been touched by Lymphoma.
For her second Mitzvah Project, Kyra honored a Holocaust survivor by becoming a witness through the Holocaust Council Of Metro West NJ, part of the Jewish Federation.
Pictured L-R: Mom Sherri, Bat Mitzvah girl Kyra , Sister Samantha and Dad Bill. Younger Brother Jake is not pictured as he is nine and was too young to ride but helped out with Kyra’s tunes for the ride!
MM: Can you give us the details of your Mitzvah Projects?
KG: I love fitness so I initiated a spinning class at Flywheel Sports. I was able to make a playlist of the songs that we cycled to and our friends and family came to the class and donated to our cause raising $5,000. I also twinned with a Holocaust survivor named Gina Lanceter. I became a witness and will retell her story to my children and my children’s children. My survivor had the opportunity to celebrate with me on November 15, 2014, and shared my Bat Mitzvah as she never was able to experience this because of the Holocaust.
Kyra during her Bat Mitzvah service
Survivor Gina Lanceter (with the microphone) told her story of strength and courage during Kyra’s service and touched everyone there. In this picture, Gina was thanking the Goldman family for including her, but it was the Goldman family that was truly thankful to have Gina share in this special day
Survivor Gina Lanceter is holding the model of the train window. Gina was in a boxcar on her way to a concentration camp (Majdanek) with her parents. They were able to push the bar on this tiny window and push Gina out while the train was moving!
MM: Why did you decide to take on these particular Mitzvah Projects?
KG: Raising money for Lymphoma was close to my heart as my aunt had suffered with this terrible disease. She went through rigorous chemotherapy and is now thankfully cancer-free. For my second project I am going to Israel soon and I can now honor my survivor who taught me so much about the Holocaust. I was so happy to be able to share my Bat Mitzvah with someone as special as my survivor.
MM: In your own words, what does it mean to you to do a Mitzvah Project for your Bat Mitzvah?
KG: It made me feel great because I was helping others like my Aunt who suffered through this terrible illness. I also loved knowing that I could share my special day with someone who wasn’t able to have a Bat Mitzvah.
MM: If it involves a donation, what are you doing to spreading the word?
KG: We sent out an email to my friends and family to help us with our cycling class.
To find out more about these wonderful organization please click on the links: Lymphoma Research Foundation
and the Holocaust Council Of Metro West NJ.
We thank Kyra, the entire Goldman family and Gina Lanceter for sharing these amazing Mitzvah Projects with our readers.
