No'ar Hadash had a strong presence at the JRF Chesapeake Region Shabbaton in January where 12 teens joined over 125 other participants at the Pearlstonhe Retreat Center outside of Baltimore, Maryland.  Building on the overall theme of  Exploring Judaism: Our Reconstructionist Journey, the teens took the opportunity to explore what it meant to be a Reconstructionist Jew and what made their own synagogues so special.

One of the best parts of the weekend, was that teens had many chances to interact with 15 younger children in attendance with their families. Activities included a bible trivia challenge and the Jewish Values Trail Mix program from the No'ar Hadash Program Bank.  Groups of teens and younger children choose trail mix ingredients to represent various important Jewish values.  They then combined their values into delicious trail mix combinations.  Later, the teens shared their trail mix with the entire shabbaton at the closing program and explained why each value was an important part of their Judaism.

No'ar Hadash participants also explored the value of hiddur mitzvah by creating b'samim (spices) for the communal havdallah.  Using cloves, oranges and lemons, participants made their own unique designs.

Teens at the shabbaton came from Adat Shalom Reconstructionist Congregation in Bethesda, Oseh Shalom in Laurel, Columbia Jewish Congregation, and Beth Hatikvah in Baltimore.