Heleni Buckwald’s Bat Mitzvah

Hello! My name is Heleni Buckwald. I’m in 7th grade at A.P. Giannini Middle School. In my free time I like to sing, read, draw, and hang out with my friends. One of my main extracurricular activities is performing in musical theater shows at Musical Theatre Works. 

I have been a member of Beth Sholom my whole life. I had my baby naming, participated in volunteer projects, and learned a lot as part of our community. My mom also grew up at Beth Sholom. This is part of why Beth Sholom is so special to me.

My parsha is Vayikra, which is the first portion of Leviticus. It is about the rituals of sacrifice and punishment for sin. I was particularly interested in a phrase that is repeated in the text: רֵֽיחַ־נִיח֖וֹחַ (rei-akh ni-hoakh), meaning “a pleasing scent.”  If you are interested in hearing more about it, you should come to my Bat Mitzvah.

Practicing for my Bat Mitzvah has been a challenge, but with practice, it got easier. And now that I am almost ready it feels a lot less stressful than people let on. But I didn't get to this point all on my own. Lots of people helped me. I want to thank Marilyn Heiss for being such a great tutor and Rabbi Russell for helping me write my drash and teaching me some of the blessings. 

I’m also very grateful for אבא ,אמא, and Mika. You have helped me so much and supported me through thick and thin, even though you have also embarrassed me many a-time. I'm very glad to get to be with you all. I would also like to acknowledge all my family that is coming from near and far, even as far as Israel. I'm so happy you all are able to come. And lastly, I would like to thank my friends. You are always able to make me laugh and have fun, even on tough days. I look forward to seeing everyone on this exciting day.