Annual winter weekend in the snow

Young Jewish Professionals (YJP) recently held its annual Winter Weekend retreat at Feathertop Chalet in Harrietville.

One hundred YJP members made their way to the venue, around 70 under their own steam and the remainder took advantage of the complimentary coach travel provided by the organisation.

YJP co-founder Rabbi Moshe Kahn said, “The retreat is centred around Shabbat, a day of rest and connection.

“We’ve planned a range of Shabbat experiences, conversations and activities led by facilitators and retreat attendees.”

Some members who arrived the day before Shabbat took advantage of the ski fields on Mt Hotham, while others took time out after a busy week relaxing in the lounge or exploring Harrietville and its surrounds.

Tyla Chapman, an accomplished skier, joined the retreat on her own as she wanted to ski Hotham with a group rather than solo.

As a first time retreat attendee she had no expectations of the weekend.

“The program was fabulously run with so many options. It was hard to choose,” Chapman said.

“It was up to you for what you put in and got out.”

She met a lot of people, some new faces and others she knew and reconnected with them.

“The White Party on after Shabbos was terrific. David Zimmer and I are both DJs so we played the decks.”

On Shabbat the members were split into two groups.

A Sisterhood Circle for the women met in the Tea Lounge, where over wine and snacks the group talked about the transformative power of female friendships.

At the same time the dining room was the place for beer and biltong and a bromance session encouraging men to open up and share supportive advice and guidance for one another.

For Rebeca Shamrakov it was a weekend of firsts. She had never attended the retreat and had never been to the snow. “Its was great to mingle and meet different people and I felt very welcome,” she said.

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