Alumni Stories

The Project-Incubator, Paideia’s 10-day summer program for supporting the development of initiatives for European Jewish life, took place in July. Graduate Iva Komárková co-organized the SHTETL FEST in Brno, Czech Republic, shortly after the program.

BRNO, CZECH REPUBLIC A Community Gathering, a highlight of the SHTETL FEST, is an initiative by Iva who is a Brno native and one of festival’s key organizers. Iva’s project goal was to create a communal experience at the festival where attendees would have the opportunity to interact with Jewish activists and performers in a more intimate setting. The Community Gathering took the form of a Shabbat dinner for 150 guests from around the world – activists, university students from Prague, and performers seeking to build community in Brno.
Paideia alumni played pivotal roles in shaping the entire festival, underscoring how Paideia’s network fosters collaboration on both personal and professional levels. Beto Guzman Abundes, Chair of the Finnish Jewish Organization of Young Adults (JOY) and a fellow participant in this summer’s Project-Incubator, attended the festival, which was overseen by Paideia alumnus Rabbi Stepan Kliment, Rabbi of the Brno Jewish Community. Stepan opened the event and gave a lecture on the roots of antisemitism. Also contributing were alumna Pavlina Sulcova, who led discussion groups and facilitated a Kafka workshop, Petr Papousek, Head of the Federation of Jewish Communities in the Czech Republic, and Gafna Vanova, who co-led a Chevruta workshop titled “Mamele and Tatele”. 
The festival’s final day concluded with a communal prayer in memory of the six hostages recently killed by Hamas while in captivity. The deeply emotional moment brought together festival attendees in a shared act of remembrance and solidarity that underscored SHTETL FEST’s mission to build and sustain community through shared experiences. 
The SHTETL FEST is now in its third year and has become a well-known event in Brno, drawing 10,000 visitors yearly to experience Jewish culture and heritage events. Over 110 events were held during the four-day festival this September, with this year’s theme honoring Franz Kafka, marking the centenary of his death. It also paid tribute to musician Pavel Haas, who perished in the Holocaust.

Photo credit: David Konecny