Miryam Kabakov at an Eshel retreat last year. (Photo credit: Stefanie Diamond)
Since 2010, Eshel has helped strengthen inclusion for LGBTQ+ Jews within the Orthodox community.
For 13 of those years, Eshel has hosted a retreat for Orthodox parents of LGBTQ+ Jews, giving them a place to convene and share their unique perspectives while they grow together.
And while it is a national organization, Eshel Executive Director Miryam Kabakov said that Baltimore is a particularly great host for this annual event, as well as its retreat for the LGBTQ+ Orthodox Jews themselves. The event comes to the Pearlstone Retreat Center this spring, from April 30 to May 3.
“We’re really sort of finding our home in Pearlstone right now, and that’s really great,” Kabakov said. “We’ve really grown, and Pearlstone can accommodate the numbers of the people that we have … it’s where we’ve landed because of their accommodations and accessibility.”
The retreat is a time for parents of LGBTQ+ Jews to discuss their lives around a group that understands what they have experienced. Kabakov said in a previous interview with Baltimore Jewish Times that Orthodox Jews, while not a monolith, are generally “not accepting” of LGBTQ+ lifestyles. For parents of these Jews, a space to be comfortable is essential.
“The retreat is a place for the parents to really share openly about their struggles, their challenges and meet each other. We have a lot of parents who come back year after year, who are there to mentor other parents. There’s a lot of peer sharing and peer learning,” Kabakov said.