As Passover approaches on April 12, Jewish families will begin to plan their festive Passover meals, called seders. Across North America, no two seders are quite the same. Many households will read every word in the haggadah, while others will aim to keep kids engaged for 15 minutes. Sephardic seder-goers may enjoy dates in their charoset, and vegetarian households may opt for a beet instead of shank bone on the customary seder plate. But two of the uniting factors? Matzah and the Four Questions.
This year, PJ Library, the free global Jewish book program, is once again teaming up with Streit’s Matzos and, in honor of the company’s 100th anniversary, using PJ Library magic to bring matzah and questions together.
Families in the United States and Canada can find Streit’s special 100th Anniversary box, which showcases a fresh, new design featuring PJ Library books, when shopping for their Passover groceries.
Inside the 5-lb boxes, young afikomen-seekers will also be delighted to discover an envelope with two custom “question catchers,” origami-style hand toys. Kids can create their own, then follow the numbers and symbols to find questions such as “You just crossed the Red Sea! You’re free! What’s your happy dance?” or “On Passover, we think about people around the world who need help. Who is one person you wish to help? Tell us how you would help.”
These interactive question catchers marry the tradition of imagining oneself in the Passover story to dynamic family Jewish experiences that PJ Library is known for. And by having two versions of the question catcher in the box, one meant for younger children and one for older ones, PJ Library is continuing its commitment to creating experiences for kids of all ages and at all levels of knowledge.
“Passover is the most celebrated Jewish holiday,” says Alex Zablotsky, executive director of PJ Library. “It’s a meaningful time for us to reach families who want to celebrate Jewish traditions and are looking for ways to engage kids at their seder. We’re grateful to Streit’s for opening their matzo boxes to us so we can not only reach new families, but help delight them with some of what PJ Library has to offer.”
Streit’s is all about passing down traditions from generation to generation. And now, the entrepreneurial brand is celebrating 100 years of providing matzah to Jewish families.
“Passover is the quintessential Jewish story, and we use food, and particularly matzo, to tell it,” notes Aaron Gross, executive vice president of Streit’s Matzos. “Being able to partner with PJ Library this year for our 100th anniversary and help bring the Passover story—and other great Jewish stories—to even more families, is deeply baked into our values. We’ve been around for generations. My great-great grandfather Aron Streit passed this company down to his children—and we are proud to help families make their own holiday traditions to pass on as well.”
For more kid-friendly Passover activities, see pjlibrary.com/Passover.
Note to Media: Photos, interviews and additional information available. Contact Vicki Jakubovic, VICKIGJPR, Vicki@vickigjpr.com, 973-519-8926.