Your Daily Phil: RootOne expands offerings as Israel trip enrollment drops 90%

SOLIDARITY MISSION

JNF-USA volunteering in war-hit Gaza border towns let Americans pitch in, Israelis share struggles

Undeterred by the record-breaking 105-degree heat and the threat of rocket fire, a group of some 150 American visitors traveled from Jerusalem and Tel Aviv on Wednesday to Kibbutz Urim, which was came under fire on Oct. 7, and Pri Gan, a moshav infiltrated by Hamas terrorists. On the mission, which was organized by the Jewish National Fund-USA, participants planted, painted, farmed and heard firsthand accounts from residents whose lives were upended on Oct. 7, reports eJewishPhilanthropy’s Haley Cohen from the scene.

Change of pace: Aviva Kaufman, 19, from Chapel Hill, N.C., participated in the mission with her father, Jeffrey. She told eJP that she felt it was important to volunteer, rather than only observe the sites, because it gave her a way to “recognize the past, while trying to be positive about the future, and to help out while so many people around the world see Israel [negatively.]” Brooke Verschleiser, a third-year student at Brown University who runs Brown Students for Israel, told eJP that she “felt so much happier and safer” spending the day volunteering on kibbutzim near the Gaza border, and in Israel in general, than she does on her campus. 

Time to vent: For the residents of the communities, the JNF-USA mission also provided a sense of solidarity as well as an opportunity to discuss the ongoing challenges facing their communities. Tali Medina, whose husband was shot by Hamas terrorists on Oct. 7 and who has been officially recognized for her efforts running Urim’s dairy farm throughout the war, said she was frustrated by the lack of government support for her community, which is too far from the border to be eligible for the benefits. “If they recognize me as a war hero, why doesn’t [the government] recognize our kibbutz for the budget for safe rooms? It’s not fair,” she said. “I’m a little angry.” 

Read the full report here.

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WAR MACHINES

We need to fight campus antisemitism differently

“Make no mistake: There is nothing spontaneous, grassroots or student-led in what we are seeing at universities today. We face an incredibly well-funded, organized anti-Israel machine across the country. And to stop the antisemitic, anti-Israel machine, we need to create a more effective, stronger machine of our own,” writes Aya Shechter, chief program officer at the Israeli-American Council, in an opinion piece for eJewishPhilanthropy. 

‘Know your opponent’: “As the great Chinese philosopher Sun Tzu details in his classic work The Art of War, the first step to waging a successful campaign is to know your opponent. After Oct. 7, we were taken aback not only by the depth of Jew-hatred but by the strength of the Israel-hating forces. That is why I delved into the landscape of pro-Palestinian mobilization, subscribing to newsletters, following pro-Hamas activists on social media and seeking out anti-Israel professors and campus lectures nationwide.”

A coordinated effort: “[W]e need to make clear that the daily reality of Israel actually aligns with and represents the same progressive and universal concerns and values that students and faculty hold; and that Jews are in fact a tiny, even endangered, ethnic minority, not some powerful force as antisemitic conspiracists claim. We need to forge new connections with other groups, just as the anti-Israel groups did. At the same time, Jewish community institutions must stop working in silos and duplicating efforts. In order to effectively counteract campus antisemitism, the Jewish community must mount a coordinated, robust and strategic campaign with a long-term vision that seeks systemic changes.”

Read the full piece here.

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Pic of the Day

President Joe Biden holds 4-year-old Abigail Idan, whose parents were killed in front of her in the Oct. 7 Hamas terror attacks, in the Oval Office on Wednesday. She was held captive for more than 50 days in Gaza before being released to surviving relatives. Biden met with a number of Israeli children who were held hostage in Gaza, as well as their siblings. 

“The president spent, I think it was over an hour with the family, and just let Abigail play as a 4-year-old girl does,” a senior White House official told reporters on Thursday. “She played in the Oval Office, she crawled through the door in the Resolute Desk as [in] the famous picture of John F. Kennedy’s little boy.” 

Birthdays

Chair of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, Harriet P. Schleifer … 

FRIDAY: Computer expert, author, lecturer, Jewish genealogy researcher and publisher of Avotaynu, the International Review of Jewish Genealogy, Gary Mokotoff… Retired Federation executive in Los Angeles, Oakland and Sacramento, Loren Basch… Investment banker best known as the chairman and CEO of Lehman Brothers through its bankruptcy filing in 2008, Richard S. Fuld Jr.… Professor of computer science and engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Hal Abelson… President of Brandeis University since 2016, Ronald D. Liebowitz… Moscow-born journalist and political activist in Israel, Avigdor Eskin… Senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and contributing editor of The Atlantic, Jonathan Rauch… London-based interfaith social activist, she founded and chaired Mitzvah Day International, Laura Marks… Journalist, biographer and the author of six books, Jonathan Eig… Former member of the Maryland House of Delegates for four years and then the Maryland State Senate for eight years, Roger Manno… Former member of the California State Assembly where he served as chairman of the California Legislative Jewish Caucus, Marc Levine… Member of the New York City Council for Bensonhurst, Borough Park, Gravesend, Kensington and Midwood, Kalman Yeger… General partner of Coatue Management, Benjamin Schwerin… Senior staff editor of the international desk of The New York Times, he is based in Hong Kong, Russell Goldman… Senior director of federal government affairs at Jazz Pharmaceuticals, Karas Pattison Gross… Media relations manager at NPR, Benjamin Fishel… London-based reporter for The Wall Street Journal covering finance, he is the co-author of a book on WeWork, Eliot Brown… Fashion model and actor, Brett Novek… Head coach of the UC Irvine Anteaters baseball program, he played for Team Israel in the 2012 World Baseball Classic, Ben Orloff… Associate account director at Real Chemistry, Alisha Katz… Subscription services for new business and product strategy at Apple, Kenneth Zauderer… Washington correspondent for The Epoch Times, Jackson C. Richman… Board liaison at American Jewish World Service, Ross Beroff… Ahron Singer…

SATURDAY: Financial executive, Harvey Hirsch… Nonprofit executive who has managed the 92nd Street Y, the Robin Hood Foundation, the AT&T Foundation and Lincoln Center, Reynold Levy… Physician and a former NASA astronaut, she is a veteran of three shuttle flights with more than 686 hours in space, Ellen Louise Shulman Baker, M.D., M.P.H…. Former director-general of the Israel Antiquities Authority, he was previously a member of Knesset and deputy director of the Shin Bet, Yisrael Hasson… Biologist and professor of pathology and genetics at Stanford University School of Medicine, he won the 2006 Nobel Prize for Medicine, Andrew Zachary Fire… Vice president at Covington Fabric & Design, Donald Rifkin… Co-founder of Casamigos Tequila, Rande Gerber… Former member of the Knesset for the Shinui party, Yigal Yasinov… CEO of ZAM Asset Management, Elliot Mayerhoff… Showrunner, director, screenwriter and producer, Brian Koppelman… Founder and CEO of NYC-based Gotham Ghostwriters, Daniel Gerstein… Attorney and journalist, Dahlia Lithwick… Author, political analyst and nationally syndicated op-ed columnist for the Washington Post, Dana Milbank… U.S. senator from New Jersey since 2013, Cory Booker… Israeli television and radio journalist and former member of the Knesset for the Jewish Home party, Yinon Magal… Professor of science writing at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Seth Mnookin… Cinematographer and director, Rachel Morrison… Identical twin brothers, between the two of them they won 11 Israeli championships in the triathlon between 2001 and 2012, Dan and Ran Alterman… Israeli screenwriter and producer, Savion Einstein… Deputy regional director for AIPAC, Leah Berry… Television and film actress, Ariel Geltman “Ari” Graynor… Basketball coach, analyst and writer, profiled by Sports Illustrated in 2018 as “the smartest basketball mind outside the NBA,” Benjamin Falk… Senior creative director at Trilogy Interactive, Jessica Ruby… Head of data and climate science at Watershed, Jonathan H. Glidden… Law clerk at Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, David Jonathan Benger… CEO at Carob Capital, Noah Swartz… MD/MPH candidate in the 2025 class at the University of Arizona College of Medicine, Amir Kashfi…

SUNDAY: Former Israeli ambassador to the U.S., he also served four terms in the Knesset, Zalman Shoval… White House chief of staff for Presidents Reagan and Bush 41, secretary of the Treasury and secretary of state, James Baker… Retired judge of the Maryland Court of Appeals, Judge Irma Steinberg Raker… Businesswoman, philanthropist, art collector and co-founder of Mirage Resorts and Wynn Resorts, Elaine Wynn… Retired four-star United States Marine Corps general, Robert Magnus… senior vice president and COO of IPRO and former president of the Bronx/Riverdale YM-YWHA and the Riverdale Jewish Center, Harry M. Feder… Cantor who has served in Galveston, Houston and Buffalo, Sharon Eve Colbert… Criminal defense attorney, Abbe David Lowell… Director of congregational engagement at Temple Beth Sholom of Miami Beach, Mark Baranek… Associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, Elena Kagan… American-born Israeli writer and translator, David Hazony… Director of criminal justice innovation, development and engagement at USDOJ, Karen (Chaya) Friedman… Retired soccer player, she played for the U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team from 1997 to 2000, Sara Whalen Hess… Founder of GlobeTrotScott Strategies, Scott Mayerowitz… Actress and film critic, she is the writer and star of the CBC comedy series “Workin’ Moms,” Catherine Reitman… Co-founder of the Arena, he is also the founder and CEO of Lost Debate, Ravi Gupta… Freelance journalist, formerly at ESPN and Sports Illustrated, Jason Schwartz… Senior editor at Politico Magazine, Benjamin Isaac Weyl… President of Saratoga Strategies, a D.C.-based strategic communications and crisis management firm, Joshua Schwerin… Israeli artist and photographer, Neta Cones… Marketing director at College Golf Experience, Jeffrey Hensiek… Associate in the finance department of Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson, Robert S. Murstein… Cybersecurity reporter, Eric J. Geller… Founder and CEO of Diamond Travel Services and CEO of A Better Way ABA, Ahron Fragin…

As Israel travel drops post-Oct. 7, RootOne to fund shorter trips, Israel-focused domestic programs

RootOne, which normally subsidizes extended Israel programs, will offer vouchers for shorter trips and for domestic programs that include large numbers of Israeli participants this year in light of a roughly 90% reduction in the number of North American teens expected to come to Israel this summer, the organization said.

This year, the organization will also provide vouchers for two-week trips to Israel in the winter, a break from its normal requirement that trips last at least three weeks in order to be eligible for the subsidy.

“We expected to bring 6,500 [teens to Israel] this summer, and we’re on track to bring 650 this summer [on full 3-week trips],” Simon Amiel, the executive director of RootOne, told eJewishPhilanthropy.

To reach more North American teenagers, the organization determined that it had to expand its offerings, at least for this year, Amiel said.

Amiel said RootOne, an offshoot of the The Jewish Education Project created in 2020, is primarily focused on educational impact, particularly through a meaningful encounter, or mifgash, between American and Israeli teenagers. While the organization still believes that “an Israel experience is the ultimate opportunity” for that, the current realities have forced the organization to be “more flexible” about its approach, he said.

“The situation has motivated us to experiment more,” Amiel said.

So this summer, the organization, which is primarily funded by the Marcus Foundation, will subsidize five other programs, including shorter volunteer programs in Israel through BBYO and Alexander Muss High School in Israel. 

“We will also offset costs for domestic experiences, which is really something we never thought we’d be doing,” Amiel said.

The two domestic programs — the Hadracha and Merkaz programs at Young Judaea’s Camp Tel Yehudah in Barryville, N.Y. — are the result of a joint initiative by RootOne and the Israeli government-backed Mosaic United.

Amiel said Mosaic United offered to bring Israeli teenagers to the United States if RootOne would offset the costs for the American participants. 

“Our managing committee came to a decision that we would invest in modified vouchers for the North American teens… but that the focus needed to be on Israel and that a significant number of Israeli teens need to be involved,” Amiel said.

The Hadracha program will focus on leadership and activism, including a four-day trip to Washington, D.C., to meet elected officials. The Merkaz program focuses on Jewish identity and Israeli history and culture.

“Extensive research has validated time and again that connection with Israeli peers is one of the most powerful tools to prolong and maximize the impact of teen immersion experiences,” Hila Rosenmann, RootOne’s director of program strategy, said in a statement. “We know that travel numbers to Israel will be much lower this year than in prior summers. But this new inclusion of Israeli teens in the Young Judaea programs allows us to create a unique immersion experience that fosters bonds and connections similar to our flagship Israel programming.”

An additional 350 North American teens are expected to participate in these new and newly subsidized programs, according to Amiel. Another 250 are expected to come on winter trips, he said, but added that this estimate may change. 

Amiel said the organization views these changes as a “one-off,” in light of the specific post-Oct. 7 circumstances, not a change in policy. Yet Amiel added that some aspects of this summer’s offerings will serve as a “pilot” for future years.

“Offsetting the costs for volunteers to come for one week — that’s likely a one-off for this year,” he said, but including extended volunteer work in RootOne-supported Israel trips may remain.

The shorter trips in the winter are also allowing RootOne to work with two new trip providers who didn’t meet the organization’s three-week requirement in the past, he said.

“Our ambition is for every Jewish teen to arrive on their college campus with a deep connection to the Jewish community and to Israel,” Bernie Marcus, the chairman of the Marcus Foundation, said in a statement. “We are building RootOne to be the engine of innovation that will get us there. This expansion initiative will be the first of many.”

Ordinarily, RootOne requires the recipients of its vouchers to participate in 8-9 hours of educational programming — often through Enter: The Jewish Peoplehood Alliance’s One2One program, which facilitates conversations between American and Israeli teens — but the organization is removing those requirements for the shorter programs, Amiel said.

Recipients of these special vouchers will also still be eligible for vouchers for extended Israel trips in the future.

“We want them to remain eligible and motivated to go on an Israel experience,” Amiel said.

We need to fight campus antisemitism differently

Anti-Israel orthodoxy was already trendy in academia and on U.S. college campuses before Oct. 7, with Israel regularly lumped into the shameful history of white European colonialism, but the virulent antisemitism that has emerged with shocking force post-Oct. 7 in protests on campuses across the country has taken the Jewish community by surprise. The most recent examples are the events still unfolding at Columbia University, NYU and Yale. 

Jewish and Israeli-American students and faculty have reacted with passionate activism and pro-Israel demonstrations, and communal backlash has succeeded in convincing federal officials to start investigations into whether anti-hate laws are being violated. Generally speaking, though, the Jewish response has amounted to largely ad-hoc and uncoordinated defensive pushback. Make no mistake, there is nothing spontaneous, grassroots or student-led in what we are seeing at universities today: We face an incredibly well-funded, organized anti-Israel machine across the country.

And to stop the antisemitic, anti-Israel machine, we need to create a more effective, stronger machine of our own.

As the great Chinese philosopher Sun Tzu details in his classic work The Art of War, the first step to waging a successful campaign is to know your opponent. After Oct. 7, we were taken aback not only by the depth of Jew-hatred but by the strength of the Israel-hating forces. That is why I delved into the landscape of pro-Palestinian mobilization, subscribing to newsletters, following pro-Hamas activists on social media and seeking out anti-Israel professors and campus lectures nationwide. Unlike the Jewish response, the pro-Palestinian messaging, while often simplistic and flatly historically inaccurate, managed to resonate deeply with students and others by tying themselves to universal values and aligning with intersectionality to build broader support (take Queers for Palestine, for example).

Additionally, while pro-Hamas forces have honed their strategies over the years through events like “Israel Apartheid Week,” those of us who support Israel lack a comparable long-term and centralized approach. Operating under the illusion that the values of diversity and acceptance extended to us, we were unprepared for the rising tide of antisemitism and deep anti-Israel hate.

In response to these observations, our approach to supporting Israel and addressing antisemitism must change in multiple ways. 

Rather than simply standing with Israel alone, we need to make clear that the daily reality of Israel actually aligns with and represents the same progressive and universal concerns and values that students and faculty hold; and that Jews are in fact a tiny, even endangered, ethnic minority, not some powerful force as antisemitic conspiracists claim. We need to forge new connections with other groups, just as the anti-Israel groups did.

At the same time, Jewish community institutions must stop working in silos and duplicating efforts. In order to effectively counteract campus antisemitism, the Jewish community must mount a coordinated, robust and strategic campaign with a long-term vision that seeks systemic changes. The fight against antisemitism is not a sprint but a marathon against an age-old and enduring hatred. Critically, we should create a new structure that connects and unites a range of Jewish organizations with those who are already active in countering campus antisemitism: the Anti-Defamation League, Chabad, Alums for Campus Fairness, the Jewish fraternity AEPi, Hillel, the Israel on Campus Coalition, the Israeli-American Council (IAC) and others. Working together, we can fight back smarter while also demonstrating a united front.

Such a national response must also have the capacity and resources to do what is necessary. This is where philanthropists and philanthropic networks can play a pivotal role. Funding an academic think tank for pro-Israel activism can produce serious studies of the anti-Israel forces on campus, which is key to understanding what they are doing and creating unified messaging strategies to defend and support Israel. A campus-focused think tank can also generate new dialogue and thinking and mount innovative pro-Israel campus initiatives. 

A pro-Israel campus machine will succeed if it is driven by a mission and messages that the vast majority of American Jews still agree on: We Jews have a right to be safe anywhere in America, and the State of Israel has a right to exist in safety. 

Aya Shechter is the chief program officer at the Israeli-American Council.

JNF-USA volunteering in war-hit Gaza border towns let Americans pitch in, Israelis share struggles

KIBBUTZ URIM, Israel — Undeterred by the record-breaking 105-degree heat and the threat of rocket fire, a group of some 150 American visitors traveled from Jerusalem and Tel Aviv on Wednesday to Kibbutz Urim, which was came under fire on Oct. 7, and Pri Gan, a moshav infiltrated by Hamas terrorists. 

On the trip, which was organized by the Jewish National Fund-USA, participants planted, painted, farmed and heard firsthand accounts from residents whose lives were upended on Oct. 7. 

Aviva Kaufman, 19, from Chapel Hill, N.C., participated in the mission with her father, Jeffrey. She told eJewishPhilanthropy that she felt it was important to volunteer, rather than only observe the sites, because it gave her a way to “recognize the past, while trying to be positive about the future, and to help out while so many people around the world see Israel [negatively.]” 

The elder Kaufman added: “It’s an amazing place to be, and it’s unfortunate the people are so misinformed about what Israel is about.”

Brooke Verschleiser, a third-year student at Brown University who runs Brown Students for Israel, said her family “was contemplating whether we should [still] come” to Israel after the Iranian missile attack that occurred just days before their flight.

But Verschleiser said that, in the end, she “felt so much happier and safer” spending the day volunteering on kibbutzim near the Gaza border, and in Israel in general, than she does on her campus.

For the residents of the communities, the JNF-USA mission also provided a sense of solidarity as well as an opportunity to discuss the ongoing challenges facing their communities.

“The fact that you are all here… it shows we are not alone,” Michal Uziyahu, head of the nearby Eshkol region’s community center, told the group during its stop in Urim. 

Uziyahu recalled the hours she spent in the bomb shelter with her sons on Oct. 7. “I held my boys and said to them, ‘Guys, we have to snap out of it and survive.’” 

Fifty-four residents of the Eshkol region are still being held hostage in Gaza. “We need to do whatever we can to bring them back alive,” Uziyahu said to applause from the crowd. “We need to rebuild our communities to remind [ourselves] that we continue to choose life and when [residents] come back, they have a home to come back to.”

Tali Medina, who manages Kibbutz Urim’s dairy farm, told the group about her husband, who was shot by Hamas terrorists as he was riding his bicycle just outside of the kibbutz, resulting in the loss of two finger tips.  

“We don’t have a safe room in the houses here, so I was lying on the floor of my daughter’s bedroom, with my 6-year-old and 16-year-old,” Medina, a mother of four who has lived on Urim for 13 years, recalled in an interview with eJP. 

The Eshkol region, a 284 square-mile swath of land southeast of the Gaza Strip, has been the target of thousands of rocket attacks, possibly tens of thousands, since 2000. Yet several kibbutzim in the Eshkol region, including Urim, don’t receive the security assistance and financial support that those closer than seven kilometers (4.3 miles) from the border do, despite being so close to the Gaza Strip that “every time Israel bombs in Gaza our homes shake,” according to Medina. 

After Oct. 7, many residents, including Medina’s husband and children, evacuated because of the lack of resources. But as head of the farm, Medina stayed. She slept in the kibbutz’s bomb shelter for a month, returning to her house only to shower. With only about 12 other residents remaining, the kibbutz was taken over as an IDF military base until February. “You can’t just leave the animals,” Medina said. Terrorists bypassed Urim on Oct. 7, instead rampaging through and destroying neighboring kibbutzim Nir Oz and Nirim. But Urim was not spared from rockets. “We had 41 alarms that Saturday morning. One destroyed our clinic, and others fell on nearby offices,” Medina recalled. 

Fragments of exploded rockets and signs of the IDF’s use of the kibbutz as a base are evident all around the kibbutz. Playground paint is chipped, flowers have stopped blooming. But several families, including Medina’s, have returned in recent months. JNF-USA runs the daylong volunteer trip weekly. Medina said the help is appreciated “since we don’t get help from the government,” but that “it’s not enough.” 

“Not many people want to come over here to work now, but we are back in the kibbutz,” she said. “We need help with finding ways to keep our kids busy, because I need to work more now. More than anything, I wish there was a budget to build a safe room [in the house].” 

Medina was recognized by Ofakim, a nearby town, as an “agriculture hero” for her work on Urim’s farm since Oct. 7. “If they recognize me as a war hero, why doesn’t [the government] recognize our kibbutz for the budget for safe rooms? It’s not fair,” she said. “I’m a little angry.” 

Your Daily Phil: Jewish donors react to antisemitism at Columbia University

NEVER AGAIN

Holocaust survivors who also lived through Oct. 7 to help lead next month’s March of the Living

Holocaust survivors who also lived through the Oct. 7 terror attacks in southern Israel or were directly affected by them will be among the 55 survivors from around the world who will lead the 36th International March of the Living in the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp next month, reports eJewishPhilanthropy’s Judah Ari Gross. This year’s March of the Living will have a dual focus: Commemorating the Oct. 7 massacre and its significance on Holocaust Remembrance Day; and marking the 80th anniversary of the destruction of Hungarian Jewry during the Holocaust.

In their footsteps: That march on Holocaust Remembrance Day, will be led by 55 survivors, 21 of them from Hungary and seven who were personally affected by the Oct. 7 attacks. The seven include five who lived in or were visiting communities that came under attack and two grandparents of captives.“I was born in Poland, and I survived the Holocaust. I had promised my grandchild a better world, but I couldn’t fulfill this promise,” one of the survivors, Bella Haim, the grandmother of Yotam Haim, who was murdered in the attack and whose body was taken to Gaza, said in a statement. “I never imagined that I would visit Auschwitz, but since Yotam marched there, I will march in his footsteps.”

‘Profound significance’: “This year’s March of the Living holds profound significance, as the horrors of the past intertwine with the present ongoing nightmare faced by the State of Israel,” Shmuel Rosenman and Phyllis Greenberg Heideman, the chair and president of the International March of the Living, respectively, wrote in a joint statement. “The recent incomprehensible massacre on Oct. 7 serves as a constant reminder of the persistent threat posed by antisemitic hatred. This year, more than ever, we understand why preserving the memory of the Holocaust is still essential.”

Read the full report here.

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GIVING CIRCLES

LeadersHow a group of young Jewish funders chose to combat antisemitismhip isn’t a position — it’s an attitude

“A giving circle is a group of people who come together to pool their charitable dollars and decide how to distribute funds in ways that reflect their communal values, passions and the impact they want to make on the broader community… We chose to participate in a giving circle because we understood that our collective attention as a community of young Jewish funders was as valuable a resource as our dollars,” write Lily Goodman and Dena Verhoff in an opinion piece for eJewishPhilanthropy.

Identifying the demand: “In the weeks following Oct. 7, we heard from others in our community that they were seeking a space to deepen their learning and communal relationships at the intersections of philanthropy and Jewish life, and to make a meaningful difference in the American Jewish landscape at a time of tremendous loss, despair, vulnerability and fear. The issue they most wanted to learn about and impact was the rising antisemitism that they were witnessing as college alumni, that they felt in the organizations they lead, and that they heard about in their roles within Jewish communal institutions.”

Taking action: “Through Slingshot, we came together as a group of 14 funders in our 20s, 30s and early 40s to form the Slingshot Giving Circle on Antisemitism. After a collaborative, two-month process, we invested $76,500 in initiatives that are combating antisemitism through bridge-building, allyship, coalition-building or intergroup relational work across North America… We did not arrive at these decisions alone. Instead, we gleaned wisdom from experts in the field who are deeply immersed in the work of fighting antisemitism, racism and building bridges across lines of difference… If we want to live in a world where we’re not afraid to wear a kippah or a Star of David on college campuses or in supermarkets, we’re going to have to keep working together in new ways. At the end of the day, the only way forward is to lean into community, learn together and act — because as young Jewish philanthropists, we do not have the luxury of sitting on the sidelines.”

Read the full piece here.

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Pic of the Day

A poster of Eliya Cohen, one of the hostages being held in Gaza, is seen today above a crowd of more than 30,000 people who traveled to the Western Wall for Birkat HaKohanim, the priestly blessing.

During the ceremony, which was led by Israel’s chief rabbis, David Lau and Yitzhak Yosef, and the rabbi of the Western Wall and holy sites, Shmuel Rabinowitz, prayers were said for the swift return of the hostages, for the healing of the wounded and for the well-being of the State of Israel and its security forces.

Birthdays

Emmy Award-winning actor, comedian and producer, he is descended from a Sephardic family rooted in Thessaloniki, Hank Azaria…

Retired attorney, Myron “Mike” Sponder… Social worker and health spokesman of the Green Party of the U.K., he is the older brother of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Larry Sanders… Hedge fund manager and founder of Renaissance Technologies, James Harris Simons… Hedge fund manager and founder of Omega Advisors, Leon G. “Lee” Cooperman… Hedge fund manager and founder of CAM Capital, Bruce Stanley Kovner… Rosh yeshiva at Yeshiva University since 1973, rabbi of the Young Israel of Riverdale Synagogue since 1974, Rabbi Mordechai Willig… David Handleman… Longtime chairman and CEO of Village Roadshow Pictures, now president of Through The Lens Entertainment, Bruce Berman… Chairman of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations from 2018 to 2021, he was previously president of Bed, Bath and Beyond, Arthur Stark… Administrative law judge at the California Unemployment Insurance Appeals Board, Beth A. Fox… Commissioner of the National Basketball Association since 2014, Adam Silver… Senior fellow at the Hudson Institute, focused on security issues in the Middle East, Michael Scott Doran… Litigator at Quinn Emanuel, he served as U.S. ambassador to the Czech Republic in the Obama administration and clerked for Supreme Court Justice Harry Blackmun, Andrew H. Schapiro… Infomercial pitchman, better known as Vince Offer, Vince Shlomi, or “The ShamWow Guy,” Offer Shlomi… CEO of the Jewish Federation of Greater Rochester (N.Y.) since 2016, Meredith Dragon… New York Times-bestselling author and adjunct professor of neuroscience at Stanford University, David Eagleman… Deputy director of community health at the Utah Department of Human Services, David E. Litvack… Manager of the Oakland Ballers baseball team in the Pioneer League, Micah Franklin… Democratic party strategist, she is a co-founder of Lift Our Voices, Julie Roginsky… President of the Alliance for Downtown New York, the nation’s largest business improvement district, Jessica S. Lappin… Senior editor-at-large for Breitbart News, Joel Barry Pollak… Attorney turned grocer and now professor, she founded Glen’s Garden Market north of Dupont Circle, Danielle Brody Rosengarten Vogel… Co-founder of WeWork and now Flow, Adam Neumann… Director of development at Yaffed, Adina Mermelstein Konikoff… Managing director, head of social, content and influencer at Deloitte Digital, Kenneth R. Gold… Spokesperson and director of public affairs and planning division at FEMA, Jaclyn Rothenberg… Film and television actress, model and singer, Sara Paxton… Senior political reporter in Manhattan, Emily Cahn Singer… Former NHL ice hockey defenseman, now a color analyst for Westwood One and ESPN, Colby Shane Cohen… TikTok Star, he runs the culinary website CookWithChefEitan, Eitan Bernath…

Robert Kraft halts ties, others reconsidering support for Columbia after antisemitic protests

Robert Kraft, who has given millions to Columbia University, announced he was halting support for his alma mater over its handling of at-times violent, antisemitic student-led protests on the school’s campus in which some faculty members have taken part. Another major Jewish funder, billionaire investor Leon Cooperman, said he was considering the same, reports eJewishPhilanthropy’s Judah Ari Gross.

However, while Kraft said in a statement that he was “not comfortable supporting the university until corrective action is taken,” he told CNN that he would continue to make donations to the university’s Kraft Center for Jewish Student Life, which was named in his honor after he made a $3 million donation to kick-start its construction in 2000. “That has been a haven of safety,” he said.

Last week, a group of students set up an encampment on the West Lawn of Columbia’s Morningside Heights campus, initially to demand that the school sever its financial and academic ties to Israel. However, the protests quickly intensified and grew violent, with both physical assaults and with antisemitic chants, including calls for Jews to “go back to Poland,” and for “10,000 October 7ths.”

Jewish students told eJP’s sister publication Jewish Insider they were frightened to be on the campus in light of the protest. 

“[Saturday night] was an absolute breaking point and the first time people were truly afraid,” Eliana Goldin, a third-year political science major, told JI. “My friends and I saw [non-Columbia students] sneak onto campus through a gap in the fence and we were verbally harassed, and some of my friends were physically assaulted. Public safety and NYPD did not help us. We were essentially stalked and followed as we tried to leave the escalating situation.”

The extent of the violence and antisemitic rhetoric prompted two public condemnations from the White House, with White House Deputy Press Secretary Andrew Bates releasing a statement criticizing the “physical intimidation” against Jewish students and calling them “blatantly antisemitic” and “echoing the rhetoric of terrorist organizations.” In his annual Passover greeting to the Jewish community, President Joe Biden alluded to the antisemitism at the university, saying that “even in recent days, we’ve seen harassment and calls for violence against Jews.”

The antisemitic protests at Columbia and at college campuses across the country have prompted condemnations from across the Jewish world, with nearly every national and local Jewish organization issuing statements or penning opinion pieces decrying them, with some going so far as to compare them to the Nazi student protests against Jews of 1930s Germany.

Writing in CNN, Anti-Defamation League CEO Jonathan Greenblatt called for “every single donor who cares about this issue” to not just halt funding for universities but instead to divert that support to nonprofits that work to protect Jewish students.

“Stopping funds will get attention. Diverting funds to support nonprofit organizations like the Community Security Service that train volunteers to protect Jewish students, or to universities specifically to support the security of Jewish students on campus, could be even more effective,” Greenblatt wrote.

Kraft said that the “turning point” in his decision to halt support for Columbia University was the revocation of assistant professor Shai Davidai’s credentials. Davidai, an outspoken critic of the university’s administrators, had attempted to enter the campus as part of a counter-protest against the encampment.

“Columbia is grateful to Mr. Kraft for his years of generosity and service to Columbia,” a  spokesperson for Columbia said in response to Kraft’s announcement. “This is a time of crisis for many members of our community and we are focused on providing the support they need while keeping our campus safe.”

In October, Cooperman, who has given more than $25 million to Columbia over the years, said he was considering pulling support for the university. When asked this week if he planned to go through with the threat, Cooperman told CNBC that he had not yet decided regarding the university in general but that he did plan to continue supporting Columbia’s business school.

Cooperman put the responsibility for the protests on the students, whom he colorfully said had “shit for brains,” not on the administrators.

“I’m uncomfortable with what’s going on at the school. But you know, I don’t want to hold the administration responsible for demonstrations,” Cooperman continued. “It’s these kids that are out of control.”

Other major funders have refrained from commenting on plans to cut or continue support for the university.

Investor and philanthropist Dan Loeb, another Columbia graduate, told the New York Post that his hedge fund would reconsider hiring graduates of Ivy League universities in light of the protests and antisemitic rhetoric on them.

“We’ve always looked beyond the target schools but we’re doing it even more so now given recent events,” Loeb said.

Holocaust survivors who also lived through Oct. 7 to help lead next month’s March of the Living

Holocaust survivors who also lived through the Oct. 7 terror attacks in southern Israel or were directly affected by them will be among the 55 survivors from around the world who will lead the 36th International March of the Living in the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp next month, the organization announced on Thursday.

This year’s March of the Living will have a dual focus: Commemorating the Oct. 7 massacre and its significance on Holocaust Remembrance Day; and marking the 80th anniversary of the destruction of Hungarian Jewry during the Holocaust.

“This year’s March of the Living holds profound significance, as the horrors of the past intertwine with the present ongoing nightmare faced by the State of Israel,” Shmuel Rosenman and Phyllis Greenberg Heideman, the chair and president of the International March of the Living, respectively, wrote in a joint statement. “The recent incomprehensible massacre on Oct. 7 serves as a constant reminder of the persistent threat posed by antisemitic hatred. This year, more than ever, we understand why preserving the memory of the Holocaust is still essential.”

This year’s event will also feature two marches: One, led by 80 Hungarian Holocaust survivors, will begin on the eve of Holocaust Remembrance Day, May 5, at Budapest’s Dohany Synagogue and end at the Keleti Train Station, where the first deportation of the city’s Jews to Auschwitz-Birkenau took place. Following the ceremony, many of the participants will continue from the station on a “Train of the Living” to Oswiecim, the Polish town adjacent to Auschwitz-Birkenau, from which they will join the second march through the concentration camp.

That march on Holocaust Remembrance Day, will be led by 55 survivors, 21 of them from Hungary and seven who were personally affected by the Oct. 7 attacks.

The seven are: Bellha Haim, the grandmother of Yotam Haim, who was murdered in the attack and whose body was taken to Gaza; Danit Gabay, who was in Kibbutz Re’im during the massacre; Daniel Louz from Kibbutz Be’eri; Smil Bercu Sacagiu, whose home was bombed in Ashkelon; Judith Tzamir from Kibbutz Mefalsim; Jacqueline Gliksman from Kibbutz Ein HaShlosha, and Zili Wenkert, the grandmother of Omer Wenkert, who was abducted from the Nova music festival. 

“I was born in Poland, and I survived the Holocaust. I had promised my grandchild a better world, but I couldn’t fulfill this promise,” Haim said in a statement. “I never imagined that I would visit Auschwitz, but since Yotam marched there, I will march in his footsteps.”

In addition to the Holocaust survivors affected by the attacks, hostages who were released from Hamas captivity and the families of current captives, as well as bereaved families, injured survivors of the attacks, Ashkelon Mayor Tomer Glam and the mayor of the Sha’ar HaNegev region, Tamir Idan, will also take part in the march.

The delegation of Oct. 7 victims was organized and is being sponsored by Haim Taib’s Menomadin Foundation 

“The link between the Holocaust, experienced by Jews 80 years ago and the horrors of the onslaught of Oct. 7 underscores our collective obligation as a nation and society to remain resilient, to defend ourselves and to continue shaping the remarkable narrative of our people,” Taib said in a statement. “I take pride in marching alongside the courageous individuals of the Oct. 7 delegation. Together, we will rise from the ashes of this horrific attack and foster prosperity and abundance in the years ahead.”

Thousands of Jewish and non-Jewish students, North American university presidents, TikTok influencers and law enforcement representatives will take part in this year’s March of the Living, the organization said.

To further mark the 80th anniversary of the Holocaust of Hungarian Jewry, the weekend before Holocaust Remembrance Day, the March of the Living, the Jewish Agency for Israel, KKL-JNF and the Hungarian Jewish Heritage Foundation Mazsök will hold a conference in Budapest focusing on the subject for young European Jewish leaders. 

“The Jewish Agency endeavors to empower young leaders to actively engage in Holocaust remembrance and tell the story of Hungarian Jewry,” Jewish Agency Chairman Doron Almog said in a statement. “Our resolve is fortified by the legacy of Hannah Szenes, a fighter and paratrooper executed by the Nazis in her hometown of Budapest. She famously declared, ‘A voice calls, and I go.’ As that same call resonates with us, we are united in our determination to heed it, drawing strength from her courage. We recognize the weight of our generation’s duty to safeguard the continuity of the Jewish people.”

How a group of young Jewish funders chose to combat antisemitism

How can young Jewish philanthropists make an impact on the American Jewish community? As young Jewish philanthropists ourselves, we have contemplated this question (and been asked it by others) frequently in the months since Oct. 7. Many of us are, for the first time, experiencing the difficulty of balancing our desire for a vibrant Jewish life that is rooted in joy and safety with the vulnerability of moving through the world without hiding our Jewish identities. We are alarmed by the escalation of antisemitism on college campuses and across our communities, and we feel the tensions in longstanding communal and personal relationships. We understand how important it is to stay connected and committed to people and organizations outside the Jewish community; at the same time we also recognize that, for many of us, those are complicated places right now.

In the weeks following Oct. 7, we heard from others in our community that they were seeking a space to deepen their learning and communal relationships at the intersections of philanthropy and Jewish life, and to make a meaningful difference in the American Jewish landscape at a time of tremendous loss, despair, vulnerability and fear. The issue they most wanted to learn about and impact was the rising antisemitism that they were witnessing as college alumni, that they felt in the organizations they lead, and that they heard about in their roles within Jewish communal institutions. 

Through Slingshot, we came together as a group of 14 funders in our 20s, 30s and early 40s came together as the Slingshot Giving Circle on Antisemitism. After a collaborative, two-month process, we invested $76,500 in initiatives that are combating antisemitism through bridge-building, allyship, coalition-building or intergroup relational work across North America.

Why a giving circle?

A giving circle is a group of people who come together to pool their charitable dollars and decide how to distribute funds in ways that reflect their communal values, passions and the impact they want to make on the broader community. The group establishes its own unique community norms and decision-making criteria; in our case, we were clear that in some cases the group’s community norms and values would differ from our individual values, and that our conclusions would be consensus-driven. 

Giving circles often function as engagement tools and amplification instruments for leaders whose collective impact oustrips their individual reach. We chose to participate in a giving circle because we understood that our collective attention as a community of young Jewish funders was as valuable a resource as our dollars. This structure gave us the opportunity to both amplify our individual gifts and do the work of articulating our priorities as a group, and to hear from leaders and changemakers we wouldn’t otherwise have been able to reach as individuals.

The members of our giving circle had a range of experiences in philanthropy. For some, this was their first time participating in a giving circle; for others, involvement in giving circles has become a frequent practice. In our first meeting, we established community norms for our time together, including openness to new ideas and accepting that even an individual’s favorite idea would not be funded if it didn’t meet the collective’s goals. 

In response to our request for proposals, we received 56 applications from organizations requesting more than $1 million total to address urgent needs — far more than we were able to invest in at the time. As the applications rolled in, our priorities and funding criteria evolved. We ultimately decided that our dollars could have the biggest impact on rapid-response efforts in the following spaces: 

• Communities that are under-resourced or under-served in dollars, staff, or geography.
• Smaller organizations or projects of larger organizations that have a focus on under-resourced areas. 
• Projects or organizations that were squarely focused on combating antisemitism. 
• Projects or organizations that clearly articulate a vision for success and the metrics they will use in evaluating that success.

To that end, we awarded four grants between $15,000 and $25,000 each to fund the following projects:

• ReKindle, an organization that brings together leaders from the African-American and Jewish individuals in Cleveland, Ohio for friendly and challenging dialogue and face-to-face interactions to break down barriers and build new relationships. 
• Carolina Jews for Justice, which combines advocacy and education to organize a non-partisan Jewish voice for justice in North Carolina and influence policy at the local and state levels.
• JOIN for Justice, the premier Jewish organizing training institute in the United States, with over 20 years of experience training rabbis, Jewish leaders and everyday people to be effective changemakers, creating a more just world and thriving communities. JOIN is bringing to the Greater Atlanta area its SEA Change Initiative (Study, Engage, Act), an intervention to transform synagogues and help them forge deep bonds of allyship with organizations led by People of Color where they support each other, work together for a better world and stand with each other against racism and antisemitism.
• Abrahamic House, a multifaith incubator for social change located in Washington D.C. that gives an opportunity for four fellows, ages 21 to 35, from four faiths to live together for a year to build interfaith programming and events. 

We did not arrive at these decisions alone. Instead, we gleaned wisdom from experts in the field who are deeply immersed in the work of fighting antisemitism, racism and building bridges across lines of difference. We know that strengthening relationships across differences is a prerequisite for combating antisemitism and uprooting bigotry of all kinds. The Jewish experience — especially in a time of ongoing violence and fear — can feel lonely and isolating. It can be easy to retreat to our own circles. But we know that it is only through meaningful relationships with others that people can unlearn the biases, assumptions and stigma that animates Jew-hatred today.

At a time of so much pain, grief and loss, we know that Jews are hungry for community. Jewish funders are no different. Giving circles offer a flexible, time-bound model to learn, grow and give together. Across the U.S., organizations are seeing a rise in participation in giving circles — whether on campuses, at community gatherings or federation events — as an antidote to isolation and loneliness. Our work with the giving circle was an opportunity to come together in service of a common goal and translate our learning into action. 

During the two months we spent together, we built trust, got to know one another, learned together and understood that we could make a difference even if we weren’t “solving” a whole problem. There is no wrong investment in addressing antisemitism, but the needs are so great and we couldn’t meet every single one of them. To that end, here is a list of organizations that responded to our RFP and are still seeking funding. Their work is urgent and critical, and we hope others will follow our lead.

If we want to live in a world where we’re not afraid to wear a kippah or a Star of David on college campuses or in supermarkets, we’re going to have to keep working together in new ways. At the end of the day, the only way forward is to lean into community, learn together and act — because as young Jewish philanthropists, we do not have the luxury of sitting on the sidelines.

Lily Goodman is the co-chair of the Slingshot Giving Circle on Antisemitism and Dena Verhoff is the co-chair of Slingshot’s board of directors. 

Your Daily Phil: At-risk Haredi youth surf through their troubles

Q&A

‘Get Your Phil’ with Rob Derdiger

As one of the more prominent Jewish institutions on a college campus, Alpha Epsilon Pi fraternity houses have often been targets for antisemitic activities, even before Oct. 7. But this has given them deep, friendly connections to campus administrators, which have become particularly useful, AEPi CEO Rob Derdiger told eJewishPhilanthropy Managing Editor Judah Ari Gross in the latest installment of “Get Your Phil.” Below are some of Werdiger’s responses from the hour-long conversation.

On engaging Jewish students: “Many, many of our brothers kind of come into AEPi because the barriers to entry are very low, but they feel the the pull of Jewish community. And then through their involvement in AEPi, they do connect with Hillel. They do connect with Chabad. They do work through other Jewish organizations and become far more engaged in the Jewish community… If you think about it as a 1 to 10 scale, we are successful even if we take a kid who’s at a ‘1’ in the level of interest in their Jewish identity and get them to be a 4, or [from a] a 3 to a 6.”

Post-Oct. 7 campus life: “AEPi has responded to over 235 individual incident reports related to antisemitism and anti-Israel activity aimed at our chapters [since Oct. 7]. That ranges from threatening protest activity to physical assault to vandalism and everything in between. And it’s an incredibly challenging environment. But I don’t like to be completely negative. Eighty-one of our chapters participated in a day of strength on Oct. 15. Since Oct. 7, we’ve tracked over a thousand pro-Israel events on campus that our chapters have participated in and our chapters have raised over a quarter of a million dollars for Israeli causes. So they are rising to the occasion.”

A friendly option: “Sometimes if AEPi or Hillel can’t get in front of a college president, the [Anti-Defamation League] can. It’s a big name and sometimes they pick up the phone. There are other times when the ADL or [American Jewish Committee] is a scary name and a campus administrator who’s in a DEI office or a conduct office or a Greek life office is remiss to pick up the phone for those individuals. But when AEPi calls, we know each other. And there are so many conversations that we’ve been able to have since Oct. 7 because we say to our colleagues on the campus side, ‘Hey, this is off the record and you’re safe talking to us here. What do you need?’… There’s a lot of misunderstanding out there and there’s a lot of fear to engage because of the idea that there could be a Title VI investigation or a public outcry.”

On the ADL’s ‘report card’ for colleges: “First, I’ll say that schools have a lot of work to do… With that said, there were a lot of calls within the Jewish community for these objective metrics on universities… And I respect the ADL for at least giving it an attempt and using a pretty robust process to gather the data… On the flip side, I definitely join in some concern that in the next 11-12 days, most students who are heading to college will be making their decisions. And I hope that this does not become kind of the singular guide or singular point of information for the decision-making process on where you’re going to go to school. And I think that [Hillel CEO] Adam [Lehman] was correct in saying that it doesn’t really represent the totality of Jewish life and Jewish experiences on campus. And that’s an important point to be made.”

Watch the full episode here.

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WHO WILL YOU BE

Leadership isn’t a position — it’s an attitude

“‘I belong nowhere,’ said my client, expressing how she felt when her liberal friends did not call her to express sympathy after Oct. 7. ‘I no longer feel comfortable in my progressive network, but the organized Jewish community, which I have weak ties with anyway, feels very alien to me,’” writes educator and life coach Rabbi David Levin-Kruss in an opinion piece for eJewishPhilanthropy.

The need revealed: “It all started when a former colleague told me a friend of his was experiencing personal, political and identity issues post-Oct. 7, and suggested that Jews like him were ripe for life-coaching. So, I sent a simple WhatsApp message to some people who fit this demographic or who know those who do. I went to make a cup of tea, and when I came back to my phone it was vibrating incessantly: ‘That’s me!’ ‘That’s my cousin.’ ‘I’m not in the group you mention but I am in touch with these people. What can you teach me?’… Almost everybody I have spoken to is looking for a stronger connection with the Jewish community, which they either left or were never really part of, but they are having trouble connecting.”

Show respect and acceptance: “Though their Jewish identity may be tenuous, their exploration of it is serious. However, approaching these people as ‘once lost but now found’ is not an effective way to connect with them. They cannot be reduced to statistics to be shifted or fresh meat to be turned into committed Jews; some will choose not to go this route, and anything that smacks of conversion will be counterproductive… Rather than wringing our hands about how we ‘lost’ these people, their ‘return’ is a reminder that there is a wellspring of Jewishness out there that can be tapped, and hopefully by means more positive than Oct. 7.”

Read the full piece here.

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Pic of the Day

“Lone soldier” reservists in the Israel Defense Forces and their relatives reunite yesterday alongside Jewish Agency Chairman Doron Almog (center) and Jewish Agency CEO Amira Ahronoviz (back right) at the organization’s headquarters in Jerusalem.

The reunion was the result of what the Jewish Agency called a “complex cross-continental operation” that it coordinated with the Merage Foundation Israel and the Israeli Immigration and Absorption Ministry, as part of its program Wings for foreign-born lone soldiers, troops who do not have immediate family in the country.

“Being a lone soldier comes with its own set of challenges, and we are incredibly inspired by their strength and resilience in the face of adversity, David Merage, president of Merage Foundation Israel, said in a statement. “Their commitment to serving our country is truly remarkable, their courage and sacrifice are an inspiration, and we are privileged to support these lone soldiers.

Birthdays

Philanthropist and head of strategic human resources at Elliott Management Corporation, she is also on the board of The Paul E. Singer Foundation, OneTable, Tikvah and the Jewish Food Society, Terry Kassel… 

FRIDAY: Elaine’s husband, Robert Brotman…Legal scholar and public intellectual, now a visiting professor at Cardozo School of Law, Stanley Fish… Prominent Israeli criminal defense attorney who also served as the attorney general of Israel, Yehuda Weinstein… Rebbi of the Vizhnitz hasidic dynasty based in Bnei Brak, Rabbi Yisroel Hager… Comedian, actress and mental health campaigner in the U.K., Ruby Wax… Investor and hedge fund manager, Jacob Ezra Merkin… VP of GEM Commercial Flooring Company in Kansas, Gloria Elyachar… Angel investment fund manager, he won three Super Bowls during his 12-year NFL career, Harris Barton… Law professor at Arizona State University and senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, Orde Félix Kittrie… Historian, author, screenwriter, political commentator and senior lecturer at the Hebrew University, Gadi Taub… Israeli entrepreneur who was the founder and former CEO of Better Place, Shai Agassi… Attorney general of Michigan, Dana Nessel… French stand-up comedian and actor, during 2019 he starred in “Huge in France,” an American comedy series on Netflix, Gad Elmaleh… Author of five books and a frequent columnist in The New Yorker, Rivka Galchen… Award-winning, film, television and theater actor, his bar mitzvah ceremony was in 2015 at age 37, James Franco… Toronto-based entrepreneur, philanthropist, CEO and co-founder of Klick Health, Leerom Segal… Actress, author and fashion entrepreneur, she co-founded Fabletics, Kate Hudson… Managing director of development at NYC’s Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty, Brian Tregerman… Rabbi, philosopher, poet, coach and entrepreneur, he writes a weekly Torah commentary on Substack, Zohar Atkins… Executive director of Honest Reporting, Gil Hoffman… Consultant at Boston Consulting Group, Seffi Kogen… Jake Gerber…

SATURDAY: Stanford University professor and 2020 Nobel Prize laureate in economics, Paul Robert Milgrom… Chairman of the media networks division of Activision Blizzard, Steve Bornstein… Immigrants’ rights activist and professor at Salem State University, Aviva Chomsky… Television and radio host, Steve Malzberg… President and founder of the Center for AI and Digital Policy, Marc Rotenberg… Executive producer and host at “The Femsplainers Podcast,” Danielle Crittenden Frum… Semi-professional race car driver and restaurateur, Alan Wilzig… Television personality and game show host, known professionally as J.D. Roth, James David Weinroth… Israeli jazz bassist, composer, singer and arranger, Avishai Cohen… British film director, Sarah Gavron… Member of the Florida House of Representatives from southern Brevard County, Randy Fine… VP of government and public affairs at Cleveland-based GBX Group, Seth Foster Unger… Director of speechwriting for the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Michael C. Frohlich… Director of development at Democratic Majority for Israel, Elliott G. Mendes… President and CEO at the Los Angeles-based Skirball Cultural Center, Jessie Kornberg… Author and former general manager of Bird in Israel, Yaniv Rivlin… Sportscaster on Fox Sports and NFL Network, Peter Schrager… New York-based human rights lawyer, Irina Tsukerman… Writer for The Free Press, she wrote a weekly newsletter, “Chosen By Choice” to chronicle her journey converting to Judaism, Nellie Bowles… Evening breaking news editor at CNN Politics, Kyle Feldscher… Policy advisor and counsel to Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI), Zachary L. Baum… Systems engineer at Google X, Joseph Gettinger… Facilitator, coach and workshop organizer, Daniela Kate Plattner… Research analyst at the U.S. Department of State, David Mariutto… VP at Cedar Capital Partners, Alex Berman… CEO of Social Lite Creative, Emily K. Schrader… Israeli scientist, engineer and artificial intelligence researcher at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dr. Maor Farid… Israeli model and swimwear designer, Neta Alchimister… Advertising platforms at Apple, McKenna Klein… Venture scout at LvlUp Ventures, Andrew J. Hirsh… R&B, soul, pop singer and teen actress, at 13 years old she was the runner-up on the second season of “The X Factor,” Carly Rose Sonenclar… Diane Kahan…

SUNDAY: Comedian, screenwriter, film director and actress, she returned to Broadway in 2018 after a 60-year hiatus, Elaine May… President of the Ben and Esther Rosenbloom Foundation, Howard Rosenbloom… British chemist and emeritus professor at the University of Cambridge, Sir Alan Roy Fersht… Award winning folklorist, author, poet and editor of dozens of books, Howard Schwartz… Former lieutenant governor of Connecticut, Nancy S. Wyman… Southern California-based interior designer, Marilyn Weiss… Emergency physician in Panorama City, Calif., Joseph Edward Beezy… UCSB mathematician, an early winner of a MacArthur genius fellowship, Michael Hartley Freedman… Rabbi, psychologist, writer and editor, Susan Schnur… Professor emeritus at George Mason University Law School, Michael Ian Krauss… Australian barrister who is a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly following 31 years as mayor of Botany Bay, Ron Hoenig… Rabbi at Temple Ner Simcha in Westlake Village, Calif., Michael Barclay… Co-founder of the Genesis Prize and the Genesis Philanthropy Group, Mikhail Fridman… Chicago-based lobbyist and attorney, Scott D. Yonover… Art collector and dealer, Alberto “Tico” Mugrabi… Washington correspondent for NYT’s DealBook, Ephrat Livni… Founder of I Was Supposed to Have a Baby (IWSTHAB), an online community geared toward Jewish women experiencing infertility, Aimee Friedman Baron… Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter for The New York Times and best-selling author, Jodi Kantor… Head of business development and innovation at Birthright North America and CEO of Unistream, Ifat Bechor… Co-founder and chief innovation officer at Zivvy Media, Eric Weisbrod… Actress and voice actress, Shayna Bracha Fox… Investor relations officer at Linse Capital, Robert J. Kaufman… Once the top-ranked collegiate female tennis player in the U.S. and currently the head women’s tennis coach at the University of Oklahoma, Audra Marie Cohen… Salesforce marketing and cloud consultant at Jackson Family Wines, Joshua Gibbs… Outfielder for MLB’s Arizona Diamondbacks, he is a two-time World Series champion and a two-time All Star, he played for Team Israel in the 2013 and 2023 World Baseball Classics, Joc Pederson… Writer, magazine editor and actress, Tavi Gevinson…

Riding the ‘Waves of Hope’: Surfer champion-turned-Haredi helps at-risk religious kids navigate life’s choppy waters

The waves were a bit strong and the breeze still chilly, on the official opening day of the Shirat HaYam gender-segregated beach in Bat Yam, Israel, last week as Waves of Hope began the first lesson of its therapeutic surfing course for a new group of at-risk girls from the Haredi community.

Exhilarated from her first foray into the sea with a surfboard, Elisheva David, 17, from the mainly Haredi city of Elad, was still wearing a wetsuit while a few of the other girls had already changed into their ankle-length skirts and long-sleeved shirts.

“I was afraid I would be cold, and that I would get water in my eyes, or that I would be stiff afterwards,” said David, who had come to the course for the first time at the suggestion of Elad’s educational and youth counselor, Odelia Levi. “It was freezing, but I am proud of myself. I for sure will come back next week.”

For Eliyahu Ben Zion, founder and director of the nonprofit, those words make his efforts worthwhile.

A former Israeli surfing champion who became religious when he was 19, Ben Zion brought the sport of surfing into the world of religious at-risk youth to help change the course of their lives. His goal now, he said, is to “return them to the path of being human.”

While using sea sports as a tool to help treat such youth is a widely used therapeutic form of treatment worldwide, the Waves of Hope program specifically for at-risk religious youth is the only one of its kind in the world, said Ben Zion, 46. Every year the nonprofit provides classes to 1,500 at-risk youth. All participants must already know how to swim.

Ben Zion initiated the program that eventually grew into Waves of Hope in 2016 when the mayor of Elad approached him with the idea of using surfing to help a group of 10 at-risk boys. Knowing the surfing world from up close since he was 6, Ben Zion said he was initially hesitant to introduce it into the religious community. But then as he created the specially tailored therapeutic program for the disaffected youth who left school and the community, he saw it as a unique way of helping these young people.

“In a classroom setting they can be troublemakers, but when they come to the sea they are really afraid. They feel the danger so I take advantage of that and can keep them on a tight leash and they have set limits. They need limits to bring them to a place where they can surf,” he said.

The religious community is no different than the rest of the population in terms of the problems youth are struggling with, he said, whether their disengagement stems from a history of academic failure, abuse, family crisis or spiritual alienation. At-risk youth from observant Jewish families, who have stepped out of their social framework, can be especially vulnerable because they often face hostility and exclusion from their families and community who regard them as rebellious, defiant or as a disgrace.

“Most of these at-risk kids go to sleep at 3 a.m. and wake up at noon,” he said. “I make it a point that they have to come on time to the course at 10 a.m. This requires them to change habits.”

Sometimes he even arranges for individual lessons at 5 a.m. to help build their self-discipline.

Facing challenges in the sea also helps them learn how to cope with obstacles and problems in their daily lives, he said. A social worker is always present during the classes.

Levi noted that she is in contact with the girls whom she recommends for the surfing course through the welfare office of Elad. The course exposes the girls to a set of experiences usually unknown in the Haredi world, she said.

“It exposes them to different places. They discover within the sea that they can succeed. Through the sea they see there are good things in the world,” said Levi. “You see the joy they experience. All these experiences go with them and give them inner strength, the sense that ‘I did something, I succeeded.’ Even if they don’t succeed, they were here, they came to the course and feel that if they want to succeed, it is all a matter of practice and effort.”

As long as he rustles up enough funding, Ben Zion says he is able to open a 10-session course for a new group of 14 youth — separate for boys and girls. It costs NIS 25,000 ($6,600) to open a course, he said, and the nonprofit receives funds from religious municipalities as well as private donations. There is always a waiting list, he added.

Recently the Good People Fund provided Waves of Hope with a matching grant for a new class of girls from the southern towns of Ofakim and Netivot who have experienced war-related trauma from the Oct. 7 Hamas attack, and he is working to raise his end of the funding. It is the second year the fund has supported the program.

“Clearly we fund organizations, but we also focus on the founder, and that was really what drew us in,” said Naomi Eisenberger, executive director of the Good People Fund. “Our focus is on individuals who have found creative ways to solve problems. Using surfing is a very creative way of dealing with the issue of at-risk youth in the religious community. And Eliyahu’s path to doing this is itself a very interesting path, he was a champion surfer before he became religious and he is clearly very passionate and committed to this work as is his wife. He is charming and he is very committed to these kids. He represents for us individuals who have found creative ways to do tikkun olam with this pretty unusual program.”

For modesty reasons, Ben Zion does not normally oversee the classes for the girls, but his wife, Katty — who said that while all nine of their children have learned how to surf, she only does “a little surfing” — is present, working out of their cramped storage room/office to help the girls who might be hesitant to take the surfing plunge. On one recent morning, for instance, there had been a mini-crisis with David, and Katty had to negotiate with her to give the lesson a try.

“Afterwards she felt like she had succeeded, and like she was worth something,” Katty said.

Those who excel in the course are sent to Wingate Institute for sports excellence, for certification as surfing instructors; they can later be employed by Waves of Hope as instructors for their private classes, which are available to the general public — both religious and secular — and their summer camps, also for the general public. Revenues from both go to pay salaries for the instructors and also help fund the at-risk youth program. Any graduate of the program can also come to surf with Waves of Hope on Fridays when they are open.

Esther Malka Nusbacher, 21, from Beit Shemesh, has been teaching the course for the girls for four years. She first took surfing lessons as a private student in the summer camp. Ben Zion saw her potential, sent her to Wingate and then employed her as a counselor for the girls program.

“Just getting to the sea is for them freedom and they enjoy that and get into the water. It is just simply something else. You come, you surf and you feel like you belong to something. When they succeed you simply see their joy on their faces,” said Nusbacher. “They learn and they succeed. Here we are, the first lesson for these girls and they are present and laughing.”

Some of their students return to their yeshiva studies or to their midrasha, Ben Zion said, while others he helps get drafted into the IDF or start working. Graduates have also gotten married and started families of their own, said Ben Zion.

“They always stay in touch after the course,” said Ben Zion. “Today they stand as human beings.”