In the photo from left to right: Mirele Goldsmith, Betsy Diamant-Cohen, Rabbi Hanan Schlesinger, and Sharon Green.

Young Judaea connections continue to span generations and geography. Recently, alum Sharon Green hosted an event for the Israeli-Palestinian peace organization Roots, bringing together a group of fellow Young Judaea alumni through a remarkable web of shared history and connections.

Sharon, a longtime Judaean who attended Young Judaea programs from Sprout Lake through Year Course 1997–1998, was connected to fellow alum Mirele Goldsmith through a mutual YJ friend. Mirele was helping organize a Baltimore gathering featuring Rabbi Hanan Schlesinger, also a Young Judaea alum, who was visiting from Israel to expand support for Roots which he helped to found in 2014. Together, Sharon and Mirele co-hosted the evening and invited Betsy Diamant-Cohen, yet another local YJ alum, who had been Mirele’s high school madricha in Brookline, MA. — only to discover that Betsy and Hanan had been on Year Course together years earlier!

The gathering brought more than 40 people into Sharon’s living room and became more than just an informational event; it was a meaningful Young Judaea reunion spanning decades of shared experiences and connections.

Hanan will be back in the USA October 25 to November 15 2026 and would love to have other YJ alumni host similar events wherever they may live in the USA. He can be contacted at: ravhanan@gmail.com

Q&A with some of the Alumni

What is your Young Judaea background?
Betsy: YJ Tsofim Club in Stamford, CT 7th – 8th grade. Bogrim Club 9-12 grade. TY 1971-1974. One of the first two kitchen girls at TY, summer of 1974 (dishwasher!), National Mazkira 1974-1975, Year Course Section 3 1976-1977, Editor of the Hamagshimim Journal 1977-78.  Madricha of YJ clubs in Massachusetts 1977-1979. Made aliyah 1986 and lived in Jerusalem until moving to Baltimore in1998.

My husband was in British Habonim on Machon, and used Kibbutz Keturah as his home base when he was a lone soldier. One of our three children went to Sprout Lake; all three went to TY.

Sharon: Sprout Lake 1988–1992, TY 1993–1996, Year Course 1997–1998, Staff at Sprout 1997, Staff at TY 1998–1999, and year-round programming with NJ/Ganei Yehudah.

How did it feel to collaborate with fellow YJ alumni you hadn’t met before?
Betsy: I loved it! Even though Sharon and I had never met before, there was an immediate sense of kinship.

Sharon: It was incredibly rewarding to collaborate with fellow YJ alumni. Knowing we were all Judaeans established a baseline of trust and shared history from the first emails. Young Judaea is a non-partisan, pluralist Zionist movement and I was proud that this event was a true representation of what that means to me.

Tell us a bit about Roots and why you are involved.
Betsy: Roots is an organization that brings together Jews and Muslims living in Israel and helps build and sustain a multicultural community. I didn’t know about Roots before Hanan’s presentation, but now that I do, I’m happy to spread the word.

Sharon: Roots is unique among peace organizations in Israel because it is based in the West Bank and works to bring together settlers and their Palestinian neighbors through dialogue and relationship-building. I’m involved because any path toward peaceful coexistence starts with dialogue and dignity, and I’m grateful to support those leading the way.

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Back in January, Rabbi Adam Drucker, Director of Education for Young Judaea Israel, traveled across the U.S. to reconnect with Year Course alumni on college campuses.

Over the course of the tour, Rabbi Adam visited five key campuses and engaged with more than 180 students, including over 100 Young Judaea program alumni. Gatherings took place at Binghamton University, UT Austin, Tulane University, Rutgers University, and the University of Miami.

Alumni enjoyed the opportunity to catch up and stay engaged with the Young Judaea community!

The YJ community recently lost our beloved colleague, teacher, and friend, Orit Segal, z”l. After a courageous battle with cancer, our community has lost an angel and a true source of light.

Orit’s professional legacy with Young Judaea Israel spanned nearly three decades, during which she was the source of magic and inspiration behind one of our core missions: teaching Hebrew.

She joined YJI in 1999 as a dedicated member of our Hebrew Studies faculty. In 2014, she was appointed Director of Ulpan, a leadership role she held until 2026.

As a professional, Orit was profoundly modest, yet her impact on our organization was immense. Under her direction, the Hebrew department was completely transformed. She championed teaching Hebrew not just as an academic subject, but as a living, breathing language. She created an Ulpan curriculum that was cutting-edge, engaging, fun, and deeply meaningful. Relentlessly driven to help every single student succeed, she extended her passion to personalized classes for advanced learners and proudly taught Arabic to those eager to expand their horizons. Beyond the classroom, she also served as the brilliant architect of our Yom Hazikaron program for many years, guiding our participants through moments of national remembrance with immense sensitivity and grace.

Thousands of Young Judaea participants have been touched by her leadership, her warmth, and the program she so masterfully built. The Hebrew program of Young Judaea is Orit’s creation, and her professional contributions are forever woven into the very fabric of our organization.

We extend our deepest condolences to her husband, Asaf, and her children, Maayan, Noam, and Avigail.

יהי זכרה ברוך

May her memory be a blessing