Story of Impact: Katia Rabina

Growing up in Kiev in the USSR, Katia Rabina tried to ignore the anti-Semitic comments she heard all around her and never spoke openly about her Judaism. “I felt something was wrong with me, that I was different,” she said. When Katia was almost 12, her family sent her to a Federation-supported Jewish camp where she began to connect with her Jewish identity. More Jewish activities and educational opportunities followed, supported by the JDC and the Jewish Agency, two key Federation partners.

For Katia, now 23, things have come full circle: this year, she will be working as a Jewish professional in Kiev, helping to build Jewish community and teaching children their first Hanukkah songs. Says Katia: “If we educate our children in the Jewish spirit, they will be able to pass that Jewish spirit to their own children.”

This Hanukkah, nurture a spark and help us share the warmth and light of Jewish life throughout the former Soviet Union and Eastern Europe. Donate now.