A Fabulous Quinceañera

As part of TBA’s Social Justice Initiative to help victims of Domestic Violence, a staff member at The Second Step, Inc. asked us to help plan a Quinceañera for one of their Latina residents. As you are aware, we enthusiastically agreed and even offered to host the event at the Temple.

A Quinceañera is a celebration of a girl's fifteenth birthday with cultural roots of Latin America but celebrated throughout the Americas. This birthday is celebrated differently from any other as it marks the transition from childhood to young womanhood, much like a Bat Mitzvah in the Jewish culture.

So a small, but energetic group of our high school girls with direction from Francie Weinberg met on December 18 to start the planning. They discussed the theme suggested by the girl’s mother and came up with ideas for food, centerpieces, decorations and goody bags to match.

Invitations were designed by Eileen Brooks and Francie Weinberg, and the students assembled the beautiful invitations for the event. With help from Midrasha students on Monday, January 9 a few days before the event, the students transformed the Board Room into a Parisian wonderland in pink (a traditional color for a Quinceañer) and purple.

On Saturday, January 14 their hard work paid off! The birthday girl and her mom were thrilled with the decorations, food and the generosity and creativity of our students. We’re very proud of our students for stepping up to help someone in need!