Readers:
 
During our stay in Tel Aviv, we had the opportunity to visit Elisa Moed's home (founder of Travelujah)! She and two other women, Michelle Kaplan Green and Leslie Mirchin, shared their stories of making Aliyah to Israel and the impact it had on the lives of their children, immediate family and friends. Other issues they addressed included the economical adjustments to living in Israel versus living in the States, learning to strictly budget, and the intense process that a family goes through whom are seeking aliyah.

Michelle, spoke about her life as well as the people she deals with as director of Nefesh B'Nefesh's "Go North" program that assists new olim in moving to Israel's northern region. Leslie spoke about her childhood as a Jewish girl growing up in the southern United States and now works in Israel for a pro-Israel lobbying group AIPAC. As three women  shared with us ways to live in Israel by volunteering with many organizations, some of which  assist in living expenses in Israel. These organizations range from volunteering with the IDF army to working at soup kitchens, nonprofits, churches, kibbutzim and more!

I believe it was a reality check! If you want to move here, to work, volunteer, or make Aliyah, we learned firsthand the hardships you will face, as well as the benefits of living in the Holy Land. It will not be easy, and you will have to sacrifice, but it is wort

Readers:

Now that I am home, and rested...well rested, there is so much is to be said about the Israel Experience trip this year. I have been looking forward to this trip for 2 years, and I must say I had great expectations for what I would experience and my expectations were exceeded tremendously!

As this was my second time going on an Israel Advocacy trip, I was looking forward to revisiting sites as well as experiencing new ones.  The first time around you don't get everything all at once, and I wanted to really take advantage of this opportunity to get questions answered that I wasn't sure of from my previous trip, as well as to become more knowledgeable in the areas that I was introduced to with the trip with Christians United For Israel.  And I did! I received so much clarity and insight that I have enough for the next 2 years to sulk in revelations received and the things that were placed on my heart.

Last year was about the experience for me; this year was about business! I can honestly say that this trip has equipped me with thorough materials, priceless hands-on experience, and provided me an opportunity to ask the hard questions and to dialogue with others whom were seeking answers themselves.  One of the best things I appreciated about the trip was the ability to communicate, and engage the speakers, Israeli students, and Israeli and Palestinian citizens on a one-to-one basis. We were not sheltered from opposin

Dear readers:

So after our breakfast in the Bedouin camp we spent time in worship and study to prepare us for the day.  Then we packed up and drove 2 hours to Sderot (as I posted my experience there in the previous blog) and then we had lunch and made our way on the bus back to Tel Aviv.

I say back to Tel Aviv because that is where we started, when we landed in the Ben Gurion Airport from Newark, NJ. There we stayed in the Gilgal Hotel and after some freetime we were joined by Linda Olmert (the sister-in-law of Ehud Olmert) for dinner. She blessed the bread and we ate!

After dinner we went up to the Sunrise Balcony in which we can get a glamorous view of the city of Tel Aviv (like NY City with a beautiful Mediterranean Sea coastline with lots of beaches!). There Linda went around to each of us and asked us our name, where we are from, what school, our studies, and what we have enjoyed this far.  After she listened keenly to each person she shared with us personal accounts in which she connected with us individually, so she was able to get to know us and she let us into her world as well.

Linda's parents were Holocaust survivors.  She currently has three daughters whom have all served or are currenlty serving in the IDF (Israeli Defense Force). She has met with specific groups before and have been apart of many important governmental organizations on behalf o

"Why do snails have shells?" asked the kindergarden teacher.

"It's a bomb shelter to keep it safe!!!" shouts the kindergarden kids, whom are laughing playing and seem like they prefer to be running around outside on the playground and not listening to the teacher.

Then all of a sudden the voice of a woman loudly reverberates over a speakerphone in which the children in school and the whole town of Sderot can hear warning everyone to run to the nearest shelter- in 15 secs. the kids are seen being escorted by the teacher into the bomb shelter in the school.  It repeats over and over and over until the 15 seconds is up, and then you pray to God that the Qassam rocket doesnt land where you are at.

Scary huh? Well I was there on Day 3. I visited an empty playground, but was pleased to see 3 little boys age 6 or 7 running around with a peace of mind entertaining us as we listened to Thomas of Sderot Media Center (google/youtube this) tell us that many children/adults suffer from psychological problems, in a constant fear that rockets from the Gaza will harm them or someone close to them...everyday....any hour....on constant alert. as we stand outside in the heat, on the playground he shares with us his experiences of instead of runnign to a bomb shelter he runs to help a mother who couldnt unbuckle her newborn baby out of the baby seat...in which he has to jus tcut the seat belt and carry the baby in