Many of you are familiar with the wonderful PJ Library program that distributes Jewish books for to young children. I recently learned about Sifriyat Pijama B’America, which mails free Hebrew books to kids 3-6 throughout the country.

Later this month I will be interviewing Adam Milstein , who co-founded this program. In the meantime, I am happy to share information from their current press release. If you are interested in the program, please sign up as soon as possible. The cut-off is June 30th.


From Sifriyat Pijama B’America:

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Israeli-American and Jewish-American families across the United States are participating in a new children’s program through which they are mailed monthly – for free – a quality Jewish children’s book in Hebrew.

Sifriyat Pijama B’America (SP-BA) provides an opportunity for young Jewish children, ages three to six, with or without Israeli roots, living in the United States, to sign up to receive free storybooks in Hebrew. The program is designed to strengthen participants’ Hebrew language proficiency and connections with Jewish values and culture, as well as develop a channel through which young Jewish children can spend more quality time at bedtime with their families in a positive, educational manner.

Why Sifriyat Pijama B’America and Why Now?

“At a time when many hundreds of thousands of Israelis have moved to the U.S. and settled with their families here, with increased assimilation away from Israeli and Jewish tradition, the value of Sifriyat Pijama B’America, a program steeped in Jewish culture and Hebrew language, cannot be stressed enough,” said Adam and Gila Milstein, a Los Angeles-based philanthropists and the project’s co-founders. “This is a program designed for our youngest Israeli-Americans – who have at least one Hebrew-speaking parent – as an integral way to maintain, strengthen and deepen ties to Jewish principles and interest in Hebrew as the language of the Jewish people and in Jewish education more generally, from an early age.”

“This isn’t a process that happens just through listening to bedtime stories in Hebrew; what we are truly seeking to do is to build communities with Jewish day schools as their focal point and help Israeli-Americans – especially those who are unaffiliated with Jewish institutions – to connect with Jewish life and Jewish education.”

Families living in areas with one or more of the schools officially affiliated with the program are encouraged to register at scheduled registration events across the country; spots will fill up quickly and are based on a first-come, first-served basis. Children need not be enrolled in an affiliated school to participate in SP-BA, but the registration events are an important first step in greater involvement in the local Israeli-American and Jewish communities. Families also can register online at www.sp-ba.org; however, website registration is limited in number of enrollments available and is offered on a first-come, first-served basis. In the fall, as described above, affiliated schools will host monthly or bi-monthly group reading events and activities to bring participating families together; families not yet registered to receive books will have the opportunity to sign up then, as well.

Bringing Jewish Values and Traditions to Life

Through High-Quality Children’s Books and Music CDs

Each year, materials delivered include nine high-quality children’s books and

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