ILANA VOLODARSKY

Ilana Volodarsky emigrated from the former Soviet Union to St. Paul in 1989. She is the Founder and Executive Director of the Russian American Jews of Minnesota (RAJMN), an organization she established in 2003. RAJMN is the only program of its kind in Minnesota, dedicated to serving the Russian-speaking Jewish (RSJ) community.. The organization plays a pivotal role in bridging the RSJ community with the broader Jewish community, offering a deeper understanding of Judaism and RSJ roots.

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Throughout the year, RAJMN organizes a wide array of events that celebrate both Jewish and Russian cultures, while also connecting members to a broad network of Jewish institutions. These include synagogues, Jewish schools, summer camps, programs in Israel, and other community-based opportunities. In collaboration with local Jewish agencies, RAJMN creates programs that facilitate the integration of RSJ culture into the broader Jewish communal life. The organization also provides scholarships and international educational opportunities for its teen and adult program participants.

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Over the past 22 years, RAJMN has hosted more than 450 events, solidifying its place as a vital resource for the RSJ community in Minnesota. Ilana oversees the organization’s financial planning and program development. In 2016, she launched the RAJMN Teen Fellowship, a year-long initiative designed to connect RSJ generations by passing down Jewish history, traditions, and cultural knowledge. The program provides participants with monthly guest lectures on diverse topics such as Israel, the Holocaust, Jewish history, art, and music, alongside opportunities to attend Jewish conferences.

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Ilana also serves as a mentor to RSJ communities across the U.S. and is a consultant for the development of new initiatives and programs tailored to the RSJ population. She regularly leads educational seminars on Russian-speaking Jewish culture. Ilana is a graduate of the Centropa Summer Academy in Berlin and has served on the Host Committee for the JDC Global Symposium for the Midwest region. Additionally, she was a key member of the organizing committee for the Limmud FSU East and West Coast Conferences.