Among those who gave warm words of praise and blessing to the bar mitzvah boys were Rabbi Eliezer Simcha Weiss, Rav Simcha Ariel, the rabbi of the youth village, Eitan Shaul, director of Youth Aliyah, Yael Horowitz, supervisor, as well as representatives of the parents and the bar mitzvah boys.

Yossi Krotheimer, Youth Village Coordinator, commended the boys for their studiousness throughout the year and wished them success in their future endeavors. He also praised the Jewish Agency, saying: “The Jewish Agency is our friend and main partner. We bless Eitan Shaul, the director of the Jewish Agency Youth Aliyah department, who is with us this evening.”

In response, Mr. Shaul honored the youth village and the excellent work that they do: “It is a great pleasure for me to be with you this evening. Our work is difficult and we rarely have a moment to relax. Today, is one of the days that is true pleasure. Looking at all the wonderful boys who came here – I can say that all our efforts were worthwhile.”

Gavriel, the representative of the bar mitzvah, addressed his friends: “Today we are celebrating our bar mitzvah. Today we are taking upon ourselves the responsibilities of adults. [The Hebrew word love] ahavah has the numerical value of 13. These are the 13 years that brought us to our bar mitzvah. All those who celebrate their bar mitzvah have the responsibilities as well as the rewards of an adult.”