Becoming a Bar Mitzvah means that I am carrying the hopes of over a million children who were murdered in the Holocaust. They never had the chance to become Jewish adults and I like to think that I am completing my Bar Mitzvah in their honor. As I continue my Jewish journey I will continue to celebrate Jewish holidays with the people I love and bring awareness to the wider world, which often seems unaware of our tragic history. Being Jewish means that I can be unique among my peers and that I can represent the Jewish culture.

For my mitzvah project, I participated in Bright Blessings. At Bright Blessings I went to a homeless shelter, and threw birthday parties for the children who live there. A reason why I chose this is that I wanted to make the children there feel special, because they have never had a birthday party before. I know how special I feel when I have a birthday party, so it felt good to host one for them. In doing this I brought a little more holiness into all our lives through doing righteous deeds.

Leo is the son of Pamela and Gary Gagnon, and the brother of Harris, who is also becoming Bar Mitzvah on the same day. He is the grandson of: Leslie and Barry Gordon, of Fort Mill, South Carolina, and Sharon and Bill Cavanaugh, of Charlotte, North Carolina.
Please e-mail messages of Mazal Tov to: pamelagnon@aol.com