2,000 at Electrifying ‘Challah Bake’

Two thousand woman united for an inspirational Mega Challah Bake before Rosh Hashanah in S. Paulo, Brazil.

If one person making Challah can bring many blessings to her home, imagine the power of 2,000 woman united, to knead their dough and then pray together, bringing positive energies and blessings to all those around us.

After having over 1,000 woman last year, and having to turn people down because there was no more space in the hall, organizers searched for a larger hall with double the capacity.

They found it at the at the Hebraica Club in S. Paulo. Within 10 days, all the tickets had sold out. Mothers and daughters together with grandmothers, friends, sisters, young and old, unaffiliated and Orthodox joined for this memorable evening.

The organizers of the event, Chani Alpern of Beit Chabad, Pessy Gansburg of Centro Novo Horizonte, Frida Tawil and Karen Feldman thought of every detail so that everything should go smoothly.

The dimension of organizing such an event is mind boggling. Every person received a kit with all the ingredients necessary to make the dough, set up on 202 tables, using 2.6 ton of flour, 4,500 eggs, 234 liters of oil, 360 kilos of sugar, 1,800 packages of chocolate chips, 2,000 aprons and spoons, and 180 volunteers to help make the challah.

Television presenter Ana Rosa Rosenberg was the Master of Ceremonies for the evening and opened with a dance group from the Hebraica Club. Daniela Barzilai recited a chapter in tehillim. Gansburg led everyone through all the steps of making Challah dough while giving mystical insights for each ingredient.

While the dough was rising, musician Aliza Nachum inspired everyone to sing and dance with her beautiful voice. There was a flash mob planned with all the volunteers dancing to the music.

Sonia Weitman was honored to lead everyone in making the bracha and pray for blessings for the New Year. The round Challot were braided, to be taken home and baked. Everyone was given a beautiful magazine about Challah called “Entrelacar”, written by Devorah Yanni and Brenda Dorf.

It was a night where Jewish women sang, prayed, united, danced and made delicious Challah.

The Mega Challah Bake in S. Paulo was one of many taking place in cities in Brazil this week, including Rio de Janeiro, Curitiba and Brasilia. Events are planned for next week in Porto Alegre and Belo Horizonte.

VIDEO: By Noemy Lobel

Mega Challah Bake 2015 from noemy lobel on Vimeo.