Due to COVID-19, we were unable to host Northeast Convention at Tel Yehudah like we typically do. While this was disappointing, the Northeast Mazkirut made the best of the situation and decided to shift convention to an online format. With over 100 participants, the virtual convention was a huge success! The theme of  convention was Connecting Kehilah, because during this time especially, it’s crucial that we unite as a community. The Northeast Mazkirut wanted to learn and share about the many ways to stay connected to our Jewish identity through the current pandemic or any time where we may feel disconnected from our Judaism. The discussions included virtual Bat Mitzvahs, Zoom calls with local Synagogues, and a continuation of keeping meaningful holidays and weekly Shabbat dinners.   

On Thursday, we kicked off the weekend with some icebreakers by splitting into breakout rooms for dyadic encounters, a Young Judaea style of small group icebreakers. Each participant got to know a few other Judaeans through meaningful, intimate conversations about how they have stayed connected to their friends, family, and Judaism during quarantine. Friday night was not the same as the traditional Shabbat at Tel Yehudah, but it was lovely to see everyone dressed up, welcoming in Shabbat as a community — even if we were doing so over zoom. We wrote Shabbatograms and heartfelt letters to senior citizens through the Met Council, helping us connect to others in the larger Jewish community. We concluded Friday with a guided meditation that transported participants back to TY for a magical Shabbat.
Saturday night was an incredibly exciting and emotional part of convention. The evening was not exclusively for the teens signed up for convention, but rather for the larger Young Judaea community. Saturday night is arguably the best night of camp or convention, and it was so special that we were able to bring it online! Young Judaea alum and former National Mazkir Maccabee Raileanu started off the evening with playing some classic Shira Shketa songs, then LINYC AVP Matan Marcus-Neuman led us in Havdalah, where we welcomed in the new week and national OTP Nikki Lerner led a super fun Rikkud session.  With the recent announcement of Tel Yehudah’s cancellation, it was especially meaningful to foster a camp-like environment for the evening. Our special guest, David Weinstein, director of camp Tel Yehudah, spoke to convention. Finally, the night concluded with a concert from Noah Wilker– everyone’s favorite way to end Saturday night at camp. 

Sunday was our last day of convention, and we wrapped up with some final activities: a scavenger hunt that each participant completed from their own home where they searched for items that reminded them of different parts of their Jewish identity or life before quarantine.  The activity concluded with conversations relating to the theme of the weekend. Each northeast region (LINYC, New Jersey, and Empire) then split up for Asepha (elections). The regions then selected a new Mazkirut for the upcoming year, showing how nothing can part the Young Judaea community from its traditions. We are so excited to see how each region grows and continues to thrive over the next year and beyond proud of everyone who participated and their willingness to stay connected to the movement in a difficult time!

 

-Your Northeast Mazkirim

Allegra Wertheim, LINYC

Manni Burach, New Jersey

Max Canning, Empire

“I was part of history. Just a Judaean from Kentucky and I became part of the history of Israel.”

On the surface Greta Rothschild feels like any Judaean, filled with love for the movement and commitment to the Jewish people, but dig a little deeper and you’ll find someone who was at Tel Yehudah listening to a live broadcast in the Beit Am of the rescue of the hostages at Entebbe; someone who just a few short years later, stood on Mount Sinai at sunrise during Year Course living at Ketura and watched the beginnings of land changing hands in the Egypt-Israel Peace Treaty- Greta Rothschild’s memories of Young Judaea are some of the most covered events in world history.

It wasn’t always that monumental and historic, however. Growing up in Lexington, Kentucky there wasn’ta huge Jewish presence, but Hadassah was strong. So when a friend invited her to a YJ club meeting at age 12, she jumped at the chance. Immediately she knew this was the place for her, the place where she could grow and be herself.  Reflecting on her early days in Year-Round clubs and as a camper at CYJ Midwest (later a staff member) she describes herself as “captivated, involved and connected.” That connection stayed with Greta throughout her life, both personally and professionally.
It’s not rare to hear a lifetime Judaean speak with such pride in and affection for the movement, but it is incredible to see the actual effect of Young Judaea on a person. The leadership and programming skills she learned in YJ through the clubs, conventions and camps so deeply impacted Greta that they became the foundation of her entire career.  After 17 years as a Synagogue Education Director, and a nearly full time volunteer leader as the Region President of Chicago-North Shore Hadassah, it’s the YJ role models she had, the peer leadership and programming skills she learned, along with her Zionist commitment and strong identity that stand out in her mind. And like most Judaeans, her YJ friendships have become life-long along with the memories.

Though a lifetime spent in serving the Jewish community and the love of Israel and Judaism are central to Greta Rothschild’s experience in Young Judaea, it’s the sense of belonging and Tikkun Olam, she most values. “L’dor v’dor is so important to me; passing down those values, my love and passion for Eretz Yisrael and joyful Jewish living  to my children, that is incredibly meaningful. A recipient of scholarships for camp and Year Course, I feel Young Judaea has taught me the true essence of what it means to give back.”

Year Course 19-20 Graduation Speech
by Sofia Feldman

Each and every one of us sitting here today are the people we are because of the choices we have made. This past year has consisted of decision making. Not just small decisions and choices of what to eat or what clothes to wear, but decisions determining our futures. I want to share with you some of the decisions I have made which have formed me into the person I am today, standing here in front of you. 

After attending the Young Judaea summer program, Machon, I immediately knew that Year Course was something I needed to do. Four weeks on Machon did not satisfy my love and passion for Israel’s culture and everything that makes Israel Israel. It was my first time ever coming to Israel and I was positive I would be back. I knew that Year Course would be something I would regret not doing, but I was absolutely terrified. I was leaving behind everything I knew and loved. I would be going from the home of BBQ to the land of schnitzel and falafel. I’d be replacing Southern hospitality for Israel’s aggressive bus drivers. I would be leaving my friends for new ones and 14 random Israelis. I would also be leaving my family, not knowing that I would make a completely new one. 

By the end of senior year, I had solidified the next five years of my life. Although I was breaking out of the classic mold of attending college directly out of high school, I was comforted by the fact that I would be returning to life back in America. I would be close again to my family, my high school friends, and everything that I had grown up with. I would be coming back to attend the University of Florida and be a part of the classic American college experience. I knew after I had made my college decision to attend University of Florida, I was not being completely honest with myself. I made the choice to go to the University of Florida for other people around me. I was trying to live up to what was expected from me, not necessarily what was right for me. I was more satisfied with the knowledge that I had a plan rather than the plan itself. I tried to suppress these emotions because I was scared of them. When they reappeared a few months ago in Israel, I was forced to confront them. While on Year Course, I surrendered to the tough realization that my decision to go to the University of Florida was not what was best for me. I could not fight it anymore, because being a college student in America felt wrong. I essentially had a crisis of where I wanted to be and where I belonged. Every time I thought about the next few years of my life in America, it wasn’t something that necessarily made me happy or something that I saw a future in. I was faced with a choice that I did not see coming. The choice to go home and resume life in America or to stay in Israel and continue my life here. And deep down, the decision for me to stay was a no brainer.

 

With the current uncertainty surrounding starting college or university this fall, there’s been a tremendous increase in gap year interest and opportunities.

Previously seen as a complicated decision that might jeopardize academic or career prospects, more and more high school seniors are seeing the deeper, short-and long-term value of taking a year abroad before starting college – specifically in Israel.

It comes as no surprise that Israel is one of the top three gap year destinations for North American students. As the original gap year in Israel, Young Judaea Year Course has always seen the immeasurable value of spending a year learning, volunteering, and experiencing Israel. (There’s a reason 10,000 alumni have called Year Course home since 1956!)

Benefits Of Taking a Gap Year

There are numerous overall benefits to choosing a different track between high school and college:

• Gaining exposure to the larger world around you
• Figuring out what you really want to do in your life
• Building a community of truly like-minded friends
• Gaining invaluable experience for your resume

 

Why Israel?

Choosing to take your gap year in Israel unlocks an additional range of opportunities to learn and grow, including:

• Building your Jewish identity
• Living in Israel, one of the most interesting and complex countries in the world
• Learning from communities of all sizes and types
• Connecting with the history and future of the Jewish people

 

By the Numbers

The results from a recent study by the Gap Year Association give us a clear picture of the many benefits of choosing the gap year track as reported by participants themselves:

• 94% said their time spent abroad helped them learn to communicate with people from different backgrounds
• 90% said they have a better understanding and respect for different cultures
• 90% of students who take time off after high school will enroll in a four-year educational institution within one year of completing their experience.
• 84% of respondents to their study said their time abroad helped them learn skills that helped them become successful in their work
• 77% said their gap year helped them find their purpose in life

  The bottom line? You may learn a lot in class or in extra-curricular activities in college, but there’s no replacement for experiencing countries, cultures, and communities firsthand – especially when that country is Israel.

So, what are you waiting for? There’s no better time than now to take a gap year in Israel – and there’s no better choice than Young Judaea Year Course!