Participants on ZFA Israel Programs gap-year programs send greetings from Israel to family and friends in Australia.
To find out which Israel journey is right for you, visit http://www.israelprograms.com.au
Videos produced, edited and filmed by Yigal Sela.
Greetings to Melbourne
Greetings to Sydney
Greetings to Queensland
Greetings to Perth
More than 360 Australian young adults aged 18-30 will be on long-term Israel programs facilitated by the ZFA and supported by MASA Israel Journey during the 2013 calendar year, breaking the previous record of 345 in 2011. This is a 20 percent increase from 2012.
“I always wanted to be in Israel for a long period of time, to get to know my heritage and my roots much better and also to have personal growth,” said Alan Stein, from Melbourne, on Betar’s shnat program. “It will be great to be back in Australia (next year) and to pass to Australian Betarim all of the things that I will learn in Israel.”
A large number of teenagers, madrichim and family members gathered at the Melbourne, Sydney and Perth airports on 27 January for ceremonies to farewell shnat participants from Australasian Zionist Youth Council (AZYC) youth movements. In all, 140 participants from across Australia from Betar, B’nei Akiva, Habonim Dror, Hashomer Hatzair, Hineni and Netzer plan to arrive in Israel by 1 February.
ZFA President Philip Chester addressed the Melbourne shnat farewell: “The ZFA is involved to try to get you thinking about when you come back to Australia because you’re going to be leaders here not only in your movements but also in the community itself. You’re going to learn a lot, and you’re going to have fun. You’re going to come back with a lot of knowledge, experience, spirit and ruach – all of the things to make our community a better place.”
Gap-year programs AUJS Aviv and Israel by Choice (IBC) have a combined 50 percent increase in participation compared with 2012. There are 88 young Aussie adults on other programs.
“I’m going to Israel because I love the country and I want to spend a long amount of time there and embrace the culture and Judasim,” said Jessica Steinberg, 18, from Melbourne, who starts AUJS Aviv this week. ” I went to (Mount) Scopus (Memorial College) since I was a baby, and I’ve heard about Israel my whole life. It’s amazing to see it when you’ve heard about it for all of those years.”
As long-term Israel programs begin, 235 young adults recently completed short-term organised Israel programs over the 2012-13 Australian summer season: three buses of 40 young adults each on AUJS Taglit-Birthright Israel, two buses of 40 young adults each on Chabad on Campus Taglit-Birthright Israel, and 35 on AUJS Academy. Taglit-Birthright is the free 10-day tour of Israel for young adults aged 18-26 who haven’t been on an organised program to Israel, and Academy is a six-week program and tour.
Photo captions:
1. Members of B’nei Akiva at a ceremony before departing for shnat, 27 January at Melbourne International Airport.
Photo by Ginette Searle/ZFA
2. Shnat participants at Sydney International Airport, 27 January.
Photo by Yuval Nemirovsky/Netzer NSW
3. Members of the welcoming committee that met youth movement gap-year program participants arriving from Australia at Ben Gurion Airport at the end of January.
Photo by Yigal Sela/ZFA
4. Youth movement gap-year program participants, shortly after arriving in Israel, tour Rabin Square, Tel Aviv, during the ZFA/AZYC Opening Ceremony.
Photo by Yigal Sela/ZFA
They came to Israel out of both curiosity and love. For most of them, their love has only increased as they have known Israel through multiple experiences by volunteering, studying, learning, meeting new people, talking Hebrew, eating, and, for 58 young Australians, becoming advocates to speak in support of Israel in a world that many many fear is becoming increasingly vitriolic toward the Jewish homeland.
On 15-17 April, 58 participants from shnat underwent the first part of “Israel in Focus-Australia,” an advocacy seminar sponsored and organised by StandWithUs, Zionist Federation of Australia (ZFA) and Australasian Zionist Youth Council (AZYC). The 58 participants came from the long-term gap year programs Israel by Choice, AUJS Aviv and Australian Zionist youth movement shnat programs (Betar, Bnei Akiva, Habonim Dror, Hineni and Netzer).
“I don’t think that even the most optimistic of us expected such a great success,” said ZFA Israel Programs Director Yigal Sela. “We were very fortunate for the quality, dedication and hard work not only from the organisations and speakers who planned and led the seminars, but also from the participants. This wouldn’t have been possible without so many people, most especially the leadership of Michelle Rojas-Tal from StandWithUs and Reuben Bolaffi of AZYC in supporting the ZFA. Moreover, we couldn’t have asked for a better calibre of young advocates: They have unbelievable enthusiasm, energy, thoughtfulness and intelligence, all of which augurs well for the Australian Jewish community. Coming from different groups, they compose a cosmopolitan force to defend Israel in different places and for different audiences.”
In all, 12 expert speakers informed the participants about a wide range of issues, including a brief history of Israel territory and maps, multiple inside views of Palestinian society, a geo-strategic tour of Jerusalem, international legal issues. Speakers included McGill University Professor Gil Troy; Ministry of Foreign Affairs legal expert Sarah Weiss-Maudi; former Israeli spokeswoman and retired Col. Miri Eisin; and Prime Minister’s Spokesman Mark Regev, who is originally from Australia.
“We’re really excited about this seminar because it is an important part of their time in Israel and a very important part when they come back to Australia as well,” said AZYC Chairperson Reuben Bolaffi. “The skills and knowledge they are learning on this seminar are invaluable as bogrim of the movement: Being in a youth movement and having ideologies, they know what it’s like to believe in something and stand up for what they believe. When they come back to Australia they will be confronted by the BDS [Boycott and Divestment Sanctions] and de-legitimisation of Israel. The seminar really gives them an opportunity to learn how to respond, and we’re very proud and excited for them to learn.”
During the second round of “Israel in Focus-Australia,” which is scheduled for May (IBC and Aviv) and September (AZYC), the young advocates will be trained to respond to specific types of groups and claims made about Israel.
“We are delighted to partner with the Zionist Federation of Australia and the Australasian Zionist Youth Council to bring this seminar to the Australian community,” said Michelle Rojas-Tal, StandWithUs’s Director of Diaspora Education. “My greatest passion for teaching comes from the overwhelming emotion I receive when I am able to teach, learn and share with a new group of talented and dedicated young adults, and it was a pleasure getting to know all of the participants over the three days they were here, and I look forward to continuing my work with them in the next seminar.”
Photo captions
1. Col. (retired) Miri Eisin explains the Jerusalem separation line during the “Israel in Focus-Australia” Geo-strategic Walk.
2. Participants from “Israel in Focus-Australia,” advocacy seminar in Israel, with Prime Minister’s Spokesman Mark Regev.
Pesach is over, so now it is time to think about Hashanah ha’ba’ah b’yerushalyim: spending next year in Jerusalem or Tel-Aviv or Haifa or anywhere else in Israel.
“Parents need to start thinking about gap year programs for their teenager not only because there are so many different options for programs but also because there are administrative needs – such as filling paperwork and setting up visas and passports – not to mention, and most importantly for parents, applying for grants and scholarships. Deadlines pop up quickly, so it’s important to get on the ball soon,” said ZFA Israel Programs Director Sarah Myerowitz.
The information sessions will provide a broad overview of the available Israel Programs and answer questions about Masa Grants and Scholarships. Programs include traditional gap-year programs such as the Shnat program through the Zionist youth movements, Israel by Choice (IBC) and AUJS Aviv; career training programs in all different fields; volunteering opportunities; religious and academic study programs; and more. The ZFA Israel Programs team is also glad to see other major gap-year programs relaunched this year geared toward Australians: the Maccabi Sports Leadership Program and Hebrew University.
“With so many formal programs, we are confident to offer a program for nearly every interest – whether he or she is doing a gap-year before studying, launching a career, taking a break in his or her 20s, and so on,” Myerowitz said.
Information nights are scheduled for 7:30 PM on the following dates
• 2 May, Melbourne: Beth Weizmann, 306 Hawthorn Road, Caulfield South
• 7 May, Perth: Perth Hebrew Congregation, Freedman Road, Menora
• 14 May Sydney (East): Shalom College, ECLC, UNSW, Kensington
• 15 May Sydney (North): Masada College, 9-15 Link Road, St. Ives.
The ZFA is the Australian representative for Masa Israel, the umbrella framework enabling Jewish young-adults aged 17-30 to spend from 5-10 months in Israel on more than 200 different Israel programs.
For more information, contact israelprograms@zfa.com.au.Leadership program;
306 Hawthorn Rd
Caulfield South
VIC 3162
t: +61 3 9272 5644
f: +61 3 9272 5640
zfa@zfa.com.au
www.zionistfederation.com.au
© 2010 ZFA. Powered by Wordpress.
Interface design by Think Soda