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How small-town Jewish teens like me stay connected in the Bible Belt

JL;DR SUMMARY Emily Florsheim shares her journey of maintaining Jewish identity while relocating among small Bible Belt towns due to her father's job. A way out west there was a fella, fella I want to tell you about, fella by the name of Jeff Lebowski. At least, that was the handle his lovin' parents gave him, but he never had much use for it himself. This Lebowski, he called himself the Dude. Now, Dude, that's a name no one would self-apply where I come from. But then, there was a lot about the Dude that didn't make a whole lot of sense to me. And a lot about where he lived, likewise. But then again, maybe that's why I found the place s'durned innarestin'.

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Tags

Jewish IdentitySynagoguePurimBible BeltBbyoTexas A&MSmall TownsChristian SchoolsFort Worth

Places mentioned

Arkansas, United States
"The earliest memory I have going to school in Arkansas involves reciting a prayer about Jesus before and after every meal."
Texas, United States
"I have attended four different high schools in Texas."
Fort Worth, Texas, United States
"At this same time my mom discovered a synagogue in Fort Worth that had a strong youth community."
Wichita Falls, Texas, United States
"Emily Florsheim, center, and classmates at Christ Academy where she attended middle school in Wichita Falls, Texas."
Tyler, Texas, United States
"One of them is Lila Katz, a senior at the University of Texas at Austin who hails from the town of Tyler in East Texas."
Israel
"Especially after going to Israel in the summer of 2023 with BBYO, a Jewish youth organization, Israel forever has a piece engraved within me."

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Cairo Item ID 49536
Cairo Source ID 42
Retrieved 2025-04-17 18:00:23 UTC
Curated 2025-04-17 19:01:20 UTC