As part of the ceremonies marking the end of the school year, a special honoring of the 2026 graduates took place at the Levi Yitzchak Schneerson Jewish Lyceum No. 144, the leading educational institution of the Dnipro Jewish Community. This moment was one of the most touching and emotional episodes of the celebration, bringing together students, teachers, parents, and all those who had accompanied the young men and women on their journey to adulthood over many years.
This year, the students completing their studies in the full-time program were Anna Petrushenska, Danylo Medyanyi, and Alisa Shnaider. Also invited to the stage were graduates who were in Dnipro and had completed their studies as external students – Mykhailo Safronov, Illya Osychenko, Myron Skaballanovich, Mykhailo Semenets, and Rodion Kobelnytskyi.
The main event of the program was a theatrical performance prepared by the graduates themselves, in which they sincerely spoke about their feelings of apprehension as they faced adulthood. The young men and women confessed that they felt anxiety and uncertainty about the future, as new decisions, new responsibilities, and new challenges awaited them. A “meteorite of life’s difficulties,” which in the performance threatened the heroes and made them reflect on how to meet the challenges of adult life, became the symbol of these anxieties.
Using elements of a fantastical plot, time travel, and modern technology, including artificial intelligence, the graduates journeyed into their own past, meeting themselves again during different years of their schooling. This unusual story led them to an important conclusion: difficulties are inevitable, but a person can overcome them if they have a solid foundation based on Torah, Jewish traditions, and the values instilled in them by their family, school, and community.
A special place in the program was given to the teachers who had accompanied the young men and women at different stages of their school journey. The graduates warmly recalled their first teacher, Iryna Rabinovich, who guided them through their initial school years and helped them take the most important steps into the world of knowledge. Afterwards, the graduates were addressed by Viktoria Klevtsova, who had been their homeroom teacher until the middle of ninth grade. In a special video address, she wished her students to move forward confidently and never fear life’s trials. This symbolic journey was completed by the current homeroom teacher of the graduating class, the Lyceum’s Deputy Director, Svitlana Romenska, who had accompanied the young men and women during the final stage of their studies and shared the joy of this important day with them.
The graduates addressed special words of gratitude to their teachers. Sincere declarations were heard from the stage that the teachers had taught them not only school subjects but also responsibility, the ability to make decisions, to seek the truth, and to remain faithful to their principles even in the most difficult circumstances.
An equally touching part of the celebration was the address to the parents. The graduates emphasized that their parents had always been there, supporting them, helping them move forward, and teaching them the most important life principles – to be human, to respect traditions, and to support one another under any circumstances. Afterwards, the parents of the graduates addressed those present, sharing the joy of this special day with their children.
Concluding their address, the graduates spoke about what they are carrying with them into adult life: the wisdom of their ancestors, the strength of the Torah, the light of Shabbos, the love for Jewish traditions, responsibility towards their community, and the understanding that every mitzvah and every good deed can change the world for the better. These values, they said, will serve as their reliable compass, regardless of where they live or which path they choose in the future.
The graduates particularly emphasized that no matter where their future lives take them, they will always have a place to return to for advice, support, and kind words – their home lyceum, the Levi Yitzchak Schneerson Jewish Lyceum No. 144, and the Dnipro Jewish Community.
They expressed sincere gratitude to their parents, teachers, and the united and cohesive Dnipro Jewish Community, under the leadership of Chief Rabbi Shmuel Kaminezki, for years of care, support, and love.
A key and very symbolic moment of the ceremony was the presentation to each graduate of a commemorative gift from the family of the esteemed member of the Dnipro Jewish Community, Yosef (Yuriy) Nikitenko. Each of them received a magnificent edition of the Chumash – the Five Books of Moses with commentaries by the Lubavitcher Rebbe in a single volume, with a wealth of additional materials, very convenient for daily Torah study. These books are currently being distributed to many Jewish communities thanks to a special program for the dissemination of holy Jewish books, implemented on the initiative of the renowned philanthropist and benefactor Yosef (Yuriy) Nikitenko and the Dnipro Jewish Community. This gift to the graduates was a particularly solemn moment, as it will serve not only as a memory of their years of study at the lyceum but also as a spiritual directive for the young people entering a new stage of their lives.
The honoring concluded with words that undoubtedly reflect the feelings not only of the graduates themselves but also of all who had watched them grow over the years: “We made it. Because we are not just a class. We are the future with roots.”
Amidst prolonged applause from the hall, the graduates thanked everyone who had been with them during their school years and passed the symbolic baton to the next generations of lyceum students.
