Natan Sharansky Visits SAR Academy

SAR Academy had the profound privilege of welcoming Soviet dissident, former prisoner, and humanitarian rights leader Natan Sharansky, his daughter, author and educator Rachel Sharansky Danziger, and community leader, activist and author Rabbi Avi Weiss for inspiring programs with students, faculty, and staff.

The visit was part of SAR’s Anniversary Dinner celebration, which marked two significant milestones, 57 years of transformative Jewish education and 40 years since Sharansky’s release, underscoring the theme that one generation’s courage becomes the next generation’s responsibility.

Students gathered “On the Steps” to welcome Sharansky and Danziger. The program featured Tehillim, poetry, and song, including a rendition of the Shema in Russian, which students had learned in advance to sing alongside Mr. Sharansky. First-grade Ivrit teacher Morah Sonia Levin shared moving reflections on her experiences growing up in the former Soviet Union and the freedoms she values today, providing a deeply personal connection to the history the students were learning. We came together arm in arm in Acheinu and Hatikvah for a very special moment.

In the weeks leading up to this historic visit, Rabbi Weiss and Rachel Sharansky Danziger each met with faculty and staff to provide context and guidance. Students studied Sharansky’s life, his courage, and his profound impact on Soviet Jewry and Jewish continuity worldwide.

Each class identified five words that resonated most with them, highlighting lessons of perseverance, strength, leadership, and moral courage. Students presented Mr. Sharansky with a laser-etched Jewish star engraved at SAR with these meaningful words. As a small token of hakarat hatov, Sharansky was also presented with a fun chess set with customized pieces representing himself, Menachem Begin, and SAR alumni chayalim.

Watch this special program here: bit.ly/NatanSteps