Celebrating Jewish Life in Sarasota and Manatee Counties, Israel and the World FEDERATION NEWS
Serving our community for over 40 years! Published by The Jewish Federation of Sarasota-Manatee www.jfedsrq.org
August 2012 - Av/Elul 5772 INSIDE THIS ISSUE:
5A Community Focus 11A Jewish Interest 15A Commentary 20A Focus on Youth 23A Life Cycle 1B Jewish Happenings 7B Israel & the Jewish World 10B Recent Events
2A March of the Living – a life-altering experience
21A Students and Kobernick residents complete joint project
6B
A children’s village, an adult dream
8B Photos of local summer camp activities A publication of The Jewish Federation of Sarasota-Manatee Klingenstein Jewish Center, 580 McIntosh Rd., Sarasota, FL 34232 Annual voluntary subscription: $25
Volume 42, Number 8
The impact of teen travel to Israel By Len Steinberg
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even years ago, The Jewish Federation of Sarasota-Manatee set out on a mission to send Jewish area teens to the State of Israel every year. What came out of this idea was a program our community is now familiar with, The Bob Malkin Young Ambassador Teen Leadership Mission to Israel – a highly subsidized 15-day trip to Israel for Jewish teenagers entering their junior or senior year in high school that has sent over 150 local teenagers to Israel. Many people wait until college for the “Birthright” experience, thinking they will gain more at an older age. However, seeing the impact this Young Ambassadors trip has had on these high-school students will change your outlook. Most Jewish identities have already been shaped by the time students begin college. In comparison, high-school students are continuously developing their views and feelings toward Judaism. This is the time to show them the beautiful State of Israel. When you introduce the State of Israel to someone who has yet to experience life without the immediate guidance of their parents, you’re more likely to find an open-minded approach to viewing the world and what the future has to offer. The students who recently traveled with me to Israel were some of the brightest, most gifted minds I have come across – truly taking home every bit of information given to them and blowing me away by the emotional impact this had on their lives. To watch these 15 teens mature during the few months of pre-mission trainings is just the tip of the iceberg. Seeing it all come together during our stay in Israel is a remarkable treasure. To sum it all up in one line, Michael Broadfoot says, “That’s it, I’m moving here!” These teenagers who are given the opportunity to travel to Israel before college come back to the States and start looking at where they want to
2012 Bob Malkin Young Ambassadors at Independence Hall in Tel Aviv
attend college. And although academics are always a top priority, a new factor has been brought to the table: the Jewish factor. These students seek universities with larger Jewish populations and thriving Hillels and Chabads. Parents are generally shocked when their son or daughter returns and asks them if they can start lighting the candles every Friday night, something that seems too simple but has such a tremendous impact on a person. The reason that our Federation chooses to focus on the teen population is simple. Teenagers already have the mental capacity to understand the importance of visiting Israel and learning about our history and culture. They tend to have more of a sense of urgency when they return home to get involved with Jewish life and strengthen their Jewish identity. These are the students who not only join organizations such as BBYO, USY or NFTY, they are the ones who become presidents of these organizations, achieve spectacular accomplishments and become a voice in our community. To learn more about the Bob Malkin Young Ambassador Teen Leadership Mission to Israel, contact Amber Ikeman at aikeman@jfedsrq.org or 941.371.4546 x105. Look out for future issues of The Jewish News for firsthand accounts of our 2012 Bob Malkin Young Ambassadors’ experiences in Israel this summer.
Why Federation invests in teen trips By Howard Tevlowitz
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or members of the Jewish community, visiting Israel is more than touring a fascinating country and enjoying amazing sights and great food. Jewish travelers strengthen their Jewish identity, Jewish connections and Jewish involvement while in Israel. In essence, Jewish tourists are basically visiting their homeland. Israel is the eternal birthright of our Jewish people, linking us to our past and to Jews around the world today. Non-Profit Org. U.S. POSTAGE PAID MANASOTA FL PERMIT 167
Sociologist Professor Steve Cohen recently released new data claiming that YOUNG AMERICAN JEWS are becoming MORE ATTACHED to Israel, probably as a result of the many organized educational experiences that the Jewish world offers. The Jewish Federation of Sarasota-Manatee is proud to offer a plethora of such programs including
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