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STAND WITH ISRAEL COMMITTEE
CBI Members Share Their Experiences in Israel
Quick Links:
My Moment of Connection By Marsha Janger
CBI's Lone Soldier in Israel
Reflections on Our First Family Trip to Israel By Lorne Polger
Israel, our Home By Sandy Levinson
My Two Incredible, Adventurous Weeks By Sophie Vener
Learning How to Live in Israel By Shimmy Raben
Read More About Life In Israel A Diary by Dr. Harvey Raben
My Moment of Connection - By Marsha Janger
I believe that most every Jewish traveler will have a moment of realization, a defining moment, that as Jews, we are part of something wonderful, precious, and unique. It is connectedness to our Jewish heritage, to what was and what is, to who we have been and who we are.
Last summer I spent a month in Israel. I had not been in over thirty years. I had come as a volunteer for two weeks, planning then to join my husband to tour.
My first weekend out of the army base, I went, with fellow volunteers, to Ben-Gurion's home at Kibbutz Sde Boker, a desert transformed into an oasis. Ben-Gurion's humble, comfortable residence, his retirement home of twenty years, had been preserved as it was during his lifetime. There were plaques, articles, historical documents, his 5000-book library, all sorts of memorabilia. There were pictures of world leaders and pictures of his family. There were love letters to Paula, his wife.
As I walked over the premises, I sensed the energy and vitality of what had been required to birth the State of Israel. I saw Ben-Gurion, the midwife. I sensed his humanness and his greatness. I gained an intimate perspective of Jewish history and felt personally immersed in the miracle of Israel.
With a rush of overwhelming pride and gratitude, tears came: tears of appreciation and tears of fear. In that moment, Israel, its' miracles and its' fragility, was mine.
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CBI's Lone Soldier in Israel
Ever since spending the spring semester of her junior year on a NFTY EIE High School in Israel trip, Julie Smith felt a passionate connection to Israel. The daughter of Arlette Smith and San Diego County Assessor/Recorder/Clerk Gregory Smith, Julie graduated from BIDS in 1999, became a Bat Mitzvah at CBI's Third and Laurel building in 2000 and was part of the Confirmation Class of 2003. Three years later, Julie left San Diego "permanently" to pursue her future in Eretz Yisroel. She now goes by the name Lilit Smeet and serves in the Israeli Defense Forces as a gun instructor. Based at Kiryat Gat, Lilit spends her free time at her new home on Kibbutz Sasa, just two kilometers from the border with Lebanon. She remains dedicated and enthusiastic about fulfilling her dreams in Israel.
Proud mother, Arlette Smith recently returned from a week's visit with Lilit.
The special trip was part of a program called Regilah eem Eemah (Army Leave with Mom) for "lone soldiers" who came to Israel as new immigrants and whose families are still in their native countries. "We all felt very fortunate to participate, as this trip only takes place every two or three years," says Arlette. The trip was arranged and funded by the Jewish 12 www.cbisd.org Agency, Friends of the IDF and the IDF itself. Traditionally, the program brings some 50 parents, but this year, 200 parents, mostly from the former Soviet Union, but also from the U.S, Europe and Canada, South America, South Africa and even India, made the trip.
The moms, and a few dads too, stayed with their children at Givat Olga, a seaside dormitory-like resort for army retreats, located between Haifa and Tel Aviv and for two days at a hotel in Jerusalem. The nearly 400 people were divided up into nine busloads to visit some of Israel's famous attractions, including the Old City of Jerusalem, Har Herzl National Cemetery, Yad Vashem, Masada, the Dead Sea, Ramat David Air Force Base.
Of course, the best part for Arlette was spending a full week with her daughter, but a close second was the opportunity to forge new friendships with other mothers and a few fathers who share the same anxieties of having children far away in dangerous positions. All are furiously emailing each other now with photos. Lilit's father and younger brother, Harrison, a student at the Jewish Academy, were not able to make this trip but plan to visit Lilit this summer.
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Reflections on Our First Family Trip to Israel - By Lorne Polger
After planning almost one year in advance, our family took its first trip to Israel together in December. After a very long flight overseas, Tel Aviv magically appeared. We spent a couple of days in Tel Aviv before heading north up the coast to Cesaria, Haifa, Akko and Safed. We completed our northern excursion at the Israeli border with Lebanon in Rosh Hanikrah. Our guide, Gershon Priewer, became affectionately known to us over our two week trip as "The Self Appointed Mayor of Israel." It did not
matter where we were in the country, Gershon seemed to know everyone.
We were struck by our enormous thirst to learn every piece of our history as Jews. Questions from Olivia (12), Myles (11) and Cindy and me peppered each moment. Gershon's fabulous wealth of knowledge allowed him to intertwine numerous points of reference as we wove our way through historical sites, city streets and sidewalk cafes (the "Hummus Shop" in Akko is not to be missed, if you can get through a 5 lb. bowl of hummus).
We were amazed that, with the apparant exception of one building, all of the damage from last summer's Kadusha rocket attacks had been repaired; not likely in a U.S. city with it's complex approval process.
We were deeply touched in Safed, the home of the Kaballah movement, by the two 400-year-old synagogues that we were able to spend time in, by the elder Chasidic Parisian-born photographic artist who was a sound engineer for the Grateful Dead in the 60's and by the tons of Birthright kids, piling off their big buses, proud as parents of newborns with their Judaism, comfortable to express it in the open, without inhibition.
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After staying at Kibbutz Kfar Blum in the North and seeing the visual changes brought about by the many conflicts with Lebanon, Syria and Jordan, we headed south through the Golan and West Bank, surprised at both its accessability (excluding the major cities), as well as the significant disparity between Arab village and Jewish settlement (lush green, palm trees and farms, surrounded by barbed wire fence).
We arrived in Jerusalem in time to attend a beautiful Shabbat service at a Reform Congregation. Although the shul was small, it was jammed to the rafters and the energy level was palpable. We felt Jerusalem's energy for the eight days, from the throngs of converging American tour groups, to the crowds on Ben Yehuda Street, to the Arab market and the rest of the Old City.
Day trips to the south found us in our kids' favorite places, Masada and the Dead Sea. "Amazing" was the word that kept coming up. We also spent one day on an active archeological dig. As we crawled through caves with our archeologist leading the way, we got to our dig area, where we were shocked to find hundreds of portions of clay pieces, ranging in size from a coin, to a plate. Our experience put the relative newness of San Diego in true perspective.
Our day at Yad Vashem was difficult, but memorable. Perhaps suitably, it was a cold, wet day, ultimately culminating in a rare Jerusalem snow storm. We hoped that our children gained some perspective by the few hours spent there, even though we chose to shield them from some of the Museum's more difficult areas.
Our trip gave each member of our family a connection to our Judaism, our history and our land that we did not previously have. We hope you all take this trip of a lifetime as soon as possible and, by the way, – take us with you!
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Israel, Our Home - By Sandy Levinson
Arthur and I have visited Israel many times since 1971, on missions, as tourists and to develope business there. But a family trip we took with Rabbi Jonathan Stein was the highlight of all our visits. It spanned four generations and had special significance for each of us. From floating down the Jordan River to visiting an Army base, to Shabbat services in Jerusalem, our already close family was cemented. But our experience at the Wall together will always be the most memorable. Our roots are there, and no matter how many times you experience that particular and special place it is always an emotional plateau. Israel represents our pride as Jews and no matter where we live in the world it is always our home.
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My Two Incredible, Adventurous Weeks - By Sophie Vener
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| Sophie Vener (right) and friend in Shar Hanegev |
When I stepped out of the airport and into the tiny rental car, I saw familiar street names. Except for these weren't in a song at Hebrew school, these were tangible streets right in front of my eyes. This past summer I spent two incredible, adventurous weeks in Israel. The first I spent on a busy street in Tel Aviv and the second I spent exploring our sister city, Shar Hanegev.
It is often said that when you go to Israel you are changed. This is completely true. You don't how or why, but it is a deep, profound change. When you are in Israel you feel an overwhelming sense of belonging and understanding. I recognized my curly hair everywhere and was connected to everyone I saw. One of the fondest memories I have took place on a Shabbat morning. I had a tradition of waking up early and finding a different bakery to get my new favorite food, berekas. I wandered into this small bakery that was packed with people. There was only one women working there and she looked about 70 years old and about 60 inches tall. There was, of course, yelling and carrying on. It was quite stressful and when I finally made it up to the front, I paid for my food and the women looked into my eyes and said, in the most genuine voice "Shabbat Shalom." I have never felt more at home.
My journey in Shar Hanegev was interesting. A complete stranger who spoke little English picked me up in Tel Aviv. He thought I was sent to marry him. It was confusing and extremely humorous, once we got things straightened out. In Shar Hanegev I spent a whole week swimming, eating, swimming, eating and hanging out with the kids until ungodly hours and sleeping until three o'clock the next day. I was living the kibbutz life. It was the best week I had in Israel; the kids were so nice, smart, welcoming and fun. After a long fun-filled week, I returned to Tel Aviv on a produce truck with Shlomo. Shlomo spoke no English and liked bad Israeli pop music. Nonetheless, we enjoyed each other's company and, hey, I got home in one piece, right? My first trip to Israel was unusual; I went without my parents and didn't see many tourist sites. But what was important was that I saw the people and I made the connections. I can't wait to go back this summer!
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Learning How to Live in Israel - By Shimmy Raben
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| Shimmy Raben in front of his Netanya apartment. |
My year in Israel has been the best year of my life, thus far. There is something about the culture and people in this country that is so comfortable to me. I have enjoyed being with my friends from Young Judea who sponsor this program, but more than anything, the freedom of being in Israel has been great for me.
My apartment in Netanya was nothing special, but I enjoyed living in an Israeli neighborhood, going to work by bus and having to manage my life like everyone else.The open air market, the shuk, where I do my shopping, is not like the clean and packaged supermarkets of San Diego. One of my favorite experiences was going to the butcher. I usually chose the chicken breasts. In the street, a meat truck offered for sale all the parts of the animals, from hooves and feet, intestines and even the head. Like I said, I stuck to the chicken breasts!
Now I am living in Holon, a suburb of Tel Aviv. I teach kindergarten-age children and work in a soup kitchen. I think what I am doing is important to these people.
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