Birthright Israel Helped Me Lead the Montreal Jewish Community

People say, “Birthright changed my life,” and you wonder, what does that actually mean? Well, 23 and a half years after my Birthright Israel trip, I’m the President and CEO of Federation CJA in Montreal. And when I look back — on my personal life, my marriage to a Jewish woman, my professional path in the Jewish community, and everything I’ve become — it all traces back to that one trip in February 2002.

It was the height of the Second Intifada. Not many people were going to Israel. I was interning at a law firm in Toronto when my friend called and said, “You have to go on this Birthright Israel trip.”

I said, “Gavin, I can’t go. I’m working full-time. Take a week off? What are you talking about?” Besides, I was born in Israel. I’d been before. I didn’t think I needed to go again.

But he said, “It’s different. You have to go.” He had gone the December before and said it was the experience of a lifetime.

So, I applied, without really understanding what I was signing up for. Back then, Birthright Israel wasn’t what it is today. The only information I had was, “Here’s your plane ticket.” That was it.

I remember the date — February 14, 2002. I was 26 years old, on a bus with other young adults. By today’s standards, I probably wouldn’t have been eligible. I was born in Israel and had left when I was 13. I’d never done a long-term program, never did a gap year. I’d only gone back to visit my dad a few times. But at the time, I got in.

I’ll never forget meeting the IDF soldiers who joined our bus for five days. One day, we were standing on top of the Golan Heights, and this kid Avi was speaking. I remember his name. I remember his paratrooper uniform and his M-16. He told us about friends he’d lost in Gaza.

Then he said something that stopped me in my tracks: “Thank you for coming to spend time with us in our time of need.”

That sentence still drives me today. I was 26, practicing law. He was 18, serving in the army. And he was thanking me?

In that moment, I realized that his contribution — his service — was so much more profound than anything I had ever done. I had never served. I had never really given back to my community. That moment forced me to reevaluate my life.

Then came the mega-event. Charles Bronfman stood up and said something else I’ll never forget: “In a world today where Jews can choose however they want to be Jewish, Birthright Israel is there to remind them of their Jewish identity.”

That was my “aha” moment. Coupled with Avi’s words, everything came together.

Yes, we were having fun. Let’s be honest — we were partying, we had a great time. It wasn’t framed as a deep or serious program. And yet, despite that, I left with a deep sense of connection — to Israel, to Jewish peoplehood, to something bigger than myself.

When I came back to Toronto, I knew I needed to do something more meaningful. I didn’t know what that meant yet — I wasn’t thinking, I want to work in the Jewish community — but I was searching.

The madrichim on our bus had been amazing, and I started getting more involved in the local community. Then one day, I saw an ad in The Globe and Mail for a job as Director of the Bronfman Israel Experience Center in Montreal.

I was 26. Aside from my mom and brother in Toronto, I had no major ties. So I thought, Why not?

Looking back, I didn’t meet a single one of the qualifications. They wanted someone fluently bilingual in French and English — I spoke Hebrew and English. They asked for five years of experience working in the Jewish community — I had zero. They wanted someone with intimate knowledge of the Montreal Jewish community — I’d only been to Montreal once, as a lawyer working on a $900 million legal transaction. I spent the week in a hotel and didn’t meet anyone Jewish.

And yet, I applied.

I must have given the interview of my life, because I got the job. I think it was clear I was on a mission. I was passionate. I was looking for purpose. And it came through.

I told myself I’d move to Montreal for three years. It’s been 23. I never looked back.

I often say: I never have to “go to work” a day in my life, because I get to do what I love. That’s an incredible feeling. I get to make a difference in the Jewish world every single day. And yes, that includes supporting Birthright Israel here in Montreal, something I’m deeply passionate about.

And of course, along the way, I got married. I had kids. My son is turning 17 next week. God willing, he’ll go on Birthright too. That’s the dream.

Not long ago, I spoke in front of Charles Bronfman when he came to raise money. I told everyone in the room: You don’t have to ask. I’m Birthright Israel’s biggest supporter.

It changed my life. And I mean that. Every word. It’s not just something I say at events. I live it. Every single day.