I know I’m not alone when I say that life during the height of COVID felt out of whack and out of order. For me, I got legally married and had my first child before I got to have a wedding ceremony with my loved ones.
I immersed at Mayyim Hayyim in January 2022 to mark all these transitions. My Mikveh Guide, Lea Andersen (z”l), who unexpectedly passed away in 2022, helped me access spiritual grounding during a flurry of change. Her gentle, comforting presence was exactly what I needed after a prolonged period of uncertainty and isolation.
That’s why I am asking you to make a donation to Mayyim Hayyim’s Lea Andersen Memorial Fund. Your gift will help make the Seven Steps Mikveh Guide Training Program financially accessible so that people of all class backgrounds, abilities, and capacities can participate.
Lea cared deeply about showing up for her guests. The fact that I wanted to mark multiple occasions all at once didn’t faze her. She was patient and gave me all the time I needed. She helped me quiet the “noise” and declutter my mind so I could attune myself to what truly mattered.
I had come to Mayyim Hayyim with my friend and my aunt, a breast cancer survivor who had her own mikveh experience in 2005 after finishing chemo. Lea showed them incredible care and kindness and spoke with them the whole time I was getting prepared.
It costs Mayyim Hayyim $395 per person to run the Seven Steps program, but Mayyim Hayyim makes the training financially accessible through a sliding scale. In the last global cohort, 58% of those who registered below the suggested amount—including 71% of those who chose our need-based level—identified as LGBTQ+, a Jew of color, and/or a person with a disability. Your support for this sliding scale model directly enables marginalized Jews to become Mikveh Guide.
Gratefully,
Kayla Reisman