Being Jewish means so much to me.  I enjoy going to services and competing with my sister, brother, and mother to see who knows the prayers better.  I like visiting with my friends and teachers at Sunday School.  I like relaxing with my family and friends at Wildacres.  Also, Jewish foods are always exciting to eat, especially on the holidays.

To me, becoming a bar mitzvah means taking on more responsibilities, like becoming a madrich (which is being a teacher’s assistant at Sunday school) or training to be a b’nei mitzvah tutor. I am excited to help younger kids learn about Judaism. I spend a lot of time looking up to others, so it feels good to have people look up to me!

Participating in these programs will help me continue to do mitzvot. In preparing to become a bar mitzvah, I chose to volunteer at a soup kitchen as my mitzvah project. I chose it because I wanted to interact with other people. I was really shy at first. Working at the soup kitchen made me more confident because it gave me the opportunity to talk to more people. Helping people felt exciting and amazing. I am looking forward to becoming a Jewish man.

Benjamin is the son of Mara and John Gose and the brother of Jacob and Syrna.  He is the grandson of the late Chana (Anita) Corn and Jeanne and the late John Gose Sr. of Genoa, Ohio.
Words of mazel tov can be sent to benjamin.n.gose@gmail.com.