First cousins join forces for big day

(L-R) Brent and Hunter Sharp at their candle lighting. CLIFF McBRIDE PHOTOJOURNALIST First cousins Hunter and Brent Sharp are seven months apart in age, belong to the same temple, go to the same school in the same grade, and have always been very close. So why not share their B’nai Mitzvah?

Hunter, son of Ronna and Steven Sharp of Palm Harbor, and Brent, son of Ted and Linda Sharp of Oldsmar, became B’nai Mitzvah on Jan. 15 at Temple Ahavat Shalom in Palm Harbor.

“Instead of family having to come down twice within the same year to share in our mitzvah, it would be easier to have them only come down once. The boys wanted it to be together. They share a lot of family and friends, and a joint guest list,” said Hunter’s mom, Ronna, speaking for herself and her sisterin law, Linda.

“Having a B’nai Mitzvah also helped financially; we were able to share in the expenses and in the planning,” she said.

A potential drawback for the two families was finding a local venue room to accommodate their 230 guests affordably, due to their twohousehold guest list. Ronna and Linda were able to collaborate a lot on planning the event. “My sister-in-law and I had similar goals in mind. We bounced ideas off of each other. It was nice to have a partner in crime,” Ronna said.

The moms were no strangers to the planning process, either. They were able to use past vendors and draw from their prior experience. Between the two of them, they had planned four other Bar/Bat Mitzvah for their older children.

For a guest list as big as theirs, the planning began early on. “We began planning right after we got the B’nai Mitzvah date, two years in advance. Right away we booked the venue, the DJ, the decorator, and photographer,” Ronna Sharp said.

The two families were able to break down responsibilities, such as one being in charge of ordering yarmulkes, and the other in charge of hiring the videographer. When it came to party planning, the theme was an easy decision for the boys — soccer. “Both boys live and breathe soccer, and have been on the same team for the past six years,” Ronna said.

The reception was held at a waterfront restaurant in Tampa. There was dinner and dancing held in the boys’ honor directly following the Havdalah service at the temple. The boys arrived at the reception on a party bus filled with nearly 60 kids.

The room was made to look like a soccer field, and the children’s buffet was designed to resemble concession stand food.

For moms Ronna and Linda, this meant half the responsibility, and twice as much fun.

“It was the best situation for us. We are very happy we did it together. It was a nice experience as a family as well as for the boys,” they said.