Rec Center Reception

Joe Rosen (pictured on the right above with his younger brother Zev) had his Bar Mitzvah on Dec. 6, 2008 in Woodbridge, CT. His parents, Eve and Marc, took a number of steps to decrease the impact of the event, starting with the invitation. Instead of choosing a paper invitation, they used Wedding Windows to create a website with all of the information on it and sent out an electronic save-the-date and RSVP link.

To decrease the carbon footprint of the event, both the ceremony and reception were held at the synagogue. They avoided buying new or disposable items by borrowing what they could and renting the rest.

Clothing
Everyone (Eve, Marc, Joe and Zev) wore outfits that they already owned. The family also chose to skip buying monogrammed kippot and a new tallis. "Joe really did not want a tallis, so we just borrowed one from the synagogue - I certainly did feel pressure to buy one but I resisted. We also used the kippot available at the synagogue." said Eve.

Decor
They saved paper at the reception by renting glassware and decorated the tables with live potted plants. The plants were used again to decorate the tables at brunch the next day, and at the end of the party guests were invited to take them home.

Party
Instead of a traditional dance party, the family hosted a small reception at a local rec center so "no plastic toys, dj, etc were used." The kids enjoyed ice skating...

..and the adults enjoyed laser tag!

For dinner, guests were served local lamb and organic fava bean soup, prepared by Robin Bodak. For decoration, Eve borrowed paper flowers and lanterns from a friend, who had used them for her daughter's bat mitzvah a few months earlier.

Music for the dinner was played on borrowed speakers and "a cousin and uncle provide an ipod with music for evening party."

Mom's Take on Going Green
"Thinking green gave me a whole new paradigm to consider my choices for Joe's Bar Mitzvah. There were many things I had often thought were wasteful or unnecessary ( like buying kippah instead of using the ones already at any synagogue ), and I found considering the environmental impact freed me up to just say no to certain things and spend less time and money on others while still having a celebration that we enjoyed."