Shalom Chaverim!
I am so happy to be in the holy land.
After our first day in the country getting adjusted to our hostel (and the time zone) we have now completed our first two full days of volunteering. On Monday we started bright and early, taking a bus from Tel Aviv to Kibbutz Magal, about 45 minutes north, just a few miles away from the Green Line (Palestinian border.) Part of this massive Kibbutz complex is a farm called the Tlamim Center. This place was truly unbelievable: a non-profit that employs individuals with special needs as well as young Israelis on gap year before their army service. They offer incredible programs including structured animal-assisted therapy through interaction with a wide variety of animals such as horses, dogs, sheep, and more. Programs are thoughtfully designed to meet the needs of diverse populations, including individuals with physical, emotional, or cognitive disabilities, trauma survivors from the security forces, and at-risk youth. We split up into groups and spent the morning working tilling the soil in their fields, and tending to the animals. It was labor intensive, but very rewarding and a great first activity. (I was somehow stuck walking and brushing adorable sweet dogs while my fellow group mates were literally digging ditches in the sun- so I’m not complaining!)
After a delicious lunch at the kibbutz (did you know kibbutzim have their own cafeterias??), we headed up to the north to work at Kibbutz Mishmarot in their social mobility center, where they collect thousands of surplus items from retailers all over Israel to donate to those in need. We folded and boxed hundreds of items of clothing. And I finished it off with a mini song session.
This morning (wednesday) we went to Jerusalem to help bag potatoes, radishes and tomatoes at Chasdei Naomi, a charity that provides food for needy families and holocaust survivors. The employees were so grateful for ourhelp. And our new slogan at the end was “NASH POTATOES!”
After this volunteer activity we had some free time to roam the city of Jerusalem. My heart felt so happy walking around the Jewish quarter. The entire country seems way more patriotic than I remember it being last time I was here summer of 2023 with the Congregational trip.
Reminders of October 7th are EVERYWHERE. On walls, busses, buildings. Clearly the tragedy is still just as fresh in everyone’s minds here as it was 600 days ago.
The stark difference between the austerity of the old city of Jerusalem, and the LGBTQ rainbow energy of Tel Aviv as pride weekend approaches was striking. Despite the setbacks, unfathomable tragedies, and scrutiny of seemingly the entire world, Israel is as vibrant, beautiful, energetic, and magical as ever. I love this country more than words can ever say and remain hopeful that it will soon be restored back to its full glory and everyone here can finally breathe a sigh of relief.
More to come!
With love,
Cantor Josh Goldberg
