January 16, 2019
The first words said to me upon arriving in Israel were “Welcome Home.” It is amazing how meaningful two words can be and how much they resonated through Birthright Israel. I have been on more trips than I can count. I have a yearning and passion for travel and each place I go. I relish in the culture, the people,...
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January 14, 2019
When you grow up in a Jewish Community, go to Jewish Day School, and have a grandfather who is a prominent Rabbi in the Upper East Side of Manhattan the last thing you expect is for a short 10-day trip to totally shift your Jewish identity. When going on the Birthright trip was presented to me, I thought it would...
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January 9, 2019
In the state of Maine, Judaism is uncommon. To illustrate this, imagine everyone’s eyes in your class directed at you every time your grade school teacher would mention the Jewish religion. I did appreciate the attention but was sorry Ms. Jackson (oh), I am for real “Outcast”. This isolation from growing up in Portland, Maine’s public school system only augmented...
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January 8, 2019
In a little over 18 years thousands and thousands of young Jewish adults from San Francisco to San Diego, California have experienced the once-in-a-lifetime educational trip of Birthright Israel. Many visit Israel for the first time and feel the warmth of community by interacting with Israelis, but most of all they gain a deeper sense of their Jewish identity that...
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January 3, 2019
Growing up, you’d hear so many stories in Hebrew or Sunday school about how amazing Israel is. But, it is only once you actually travel there does everything come together, and you feel the connection you have always wanted to feel. This is exactly what happened to me when I traveled to Israel in June 2018 with Birthright Israel. Before...
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December 31, 2018
In this week’s edition of What Alumni Are Saying we’re hearing from participants from New Jersey. Since Birthright Israel’s inception, 72,305 young Jewish adults from New Jersey have received this life-changing gift. Do you know how many buses participants from New Jersey would fill? You guessed it, 1,807 buses! So, if you’re ready let’s see what participants from New Jersey...
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December 18, 2018
Our daughter, Desiree, went on Birthright Israel last July from New York. Up until this trip she had very little interest in her Jewish heritage and absolutely no interest in going to temple, adhering to the traditions of Judaism or dating/marrying a Jewish man. When my wife and I picked her up from the airport, we were amazed and delighted...
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December 17, 2018
Young adults today live in a dramatically different world than those from the first Birthright Israel groups 19 years ago. Then, many participants got their first passport to embark on their journey to Israel. Today, the sky is the limit for Millennials and Generation Z’ers. International travel has become increasingly affordable. The growth of social media allows anyone to explore...
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December 12, 2018
Did you know Birthright Israel participants come from every corner of the United States? Many participants choose to go on community buses or join national trips where they meet new friends from around the country. In this week’s edition of What Alumni Are Saying This Week we’re going to hear from participants from the sunshine state of Florida. What made...
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December 11, 2018
I grew up in the diaspora of New Jersey in the 1950s, where there was no religion. We never belonged to a synagogue, never had a Seder, and didn’t celebrate the High Holidays. When my husband and I had our first daughter, Pamela, I began to realize how important that missing piece of my heritage was to me. So we...
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