My favorite thing about being Jewish is learning about interesting stories about our history and ancestors.  Learning these stories made it more interesting for me to go to services and Hebrew school. What I love most about these stories is getting to tell all my little cousins and also even older people about them!

Becoming a Bar Mitzvah means that I’m going to have to make mature decisions and also become a role model for younger kids that look up to me.  The thing I learned while studying for my Bar Mitzvah is that I’m very hard on myself and that if it’s not perfect, I have to do it again and again.

My mitzvah project was getting food and supplies for foster children.  I chose this project because my Pop Pop does something similar for Hope Street Food Pantry.  The most important thing I learned was to always be grateful for what I have and for the people that love and take care of me. I realized how lucky I am that I have a family that loves me.

After my Bar Mitzvah I plan to participate in Hebrew High and BBYO which will let me spend more time with my friends and learn more about Hebrew and the stories I have not learned yet.

Kyle is the son of Ken and Kim Katz. He is the brother of Alex Katz. He is the grandson of Lita Katz and Sidney & Susan Doobrow of Charlotte, North Carolina. Send notes of mazal tov.