Young Judaea Impact comes to Oregon

By Deborah Moon

article created on:

For the first time the West Coast has a Young Judaea Impact shaliach (ambassador) devoted to deepening young adults’ connections with Israel.

Based in Los Angeles, Nadav Ben-Gal works with those aged 18 to 35 in the expansion of Young Judaea, a Zionist youth group sponsored by Hadassah. In November he visited college campuses in Portland and Eugene. He said he plans to return to Oregon periodically throughout 2008.

“Birthright (a program that provides free 10-day trips to Israel for college-age students) raised awareness of the need to work with those ages,” said Ben-Gal. “We try to take it to the second stage in commitment to Israel. We want to go beyond that to really deeply understand Israel.”

To meet that goal, YJ Impact has programs ranging from campus activism to year-long exploration of aliyah.

Israel Fellowship provides year-round activism on behalf of Israel and leadership training on college campuses. The program has expanded from seven campuses last year to 17 campuses this year, said Ben-Gal. Leaders from the fellowships on each campus are eligible for a three-day Israel Inspiration retreat scheduled for March in Mexico.

YJ Impact also teams up with birthright Israel as one of about 25 groups providing 10-day birthright trips.

“It’s great, it’s free, it’s engaging, but its’ only the first taste of Israel,” said Ben-Gal .

He said some participants on birthright trips elect to extend their stay and participate in YJ Impact’s Amirim, a four- to eight-week volunteer experience in Israel.

Participants in Amirim volunteer with the organization of their choice in a suburb of Tel Aviv. An ulpan for learning Hebrew is available for participants who wish to participate.

An even longer experience is the WUJS Arad program, which offers five month programs in three areas. Founded in 1968 by the World Union of Jewish Students, the program was taken over by Hadassah in 2006.  Participants must be Jewish college graduates between the ages of 21 and 35.

The five-month program begins in Arad, a small town in the northern Negev Desert, where participants live with a host family and volunteer in the community.

In the Peace and Social Justice track, participants spend the first half of the program in Arad learning Hebrew and attending seminars before going elsewhere in Israel to volunteer as interns in various organizations.

The program’s main track—Land, Language and Society—puts a strong emphasis on learning Hebrew and studying Jewish culture.

The Art track enables artists to spend five months in Arad “inspired by the desert in Israel,” said Ben-Gal. Artists get studio space in Arad and a local artist as a mentor.

Those considering making aliyah are eligible to try living in Israel for one year at YJ Impact’s Merkaz center, a community, absorption and activism center.

For more information on YJ Impact programs, contact Ben-Gal at 323-782-6852 or nbengal@youngjudaesa.org.