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‘We’re alike and not alike,’ say Israeli teens in S.F.

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Message: If you are having trouble reading this email, you may view this article online at: http://www.jweekly.com/13411/full/13411/-we-re-alike-and-not-alike-say-israeli-teens-in-s-f/ ‘We’re alike and not alike,’ say Israeli teens in S.F. Friday, June 9, 2000 | by ALEZA GOLDSMITH "It's a lot like it looks in the movies," said 16-year-old Dror Sabag, giving his first impression of San Francisco. "In Israel everything is so small. We don't have these huge buildings." Sabag was one of 18 Israeli teens visiting San Francisco recently as part of Partnership 2000, a joint effort between the S.F.-based Jewish Community Federation and the northern Galilee, its partner community in Israel. The program was formed to unite Manhigut Esreh, a youth leadership group from the northern Galilee, with its Bay Area counterpart, the Diller Teen Fellows. The latter is a joint program of the S.F.-based Israel Center and the Bureau of Jewish Education. "The idea is to build a living bridge between our group from Israel and the group here," said Kfir Maoz, a counselor for Manhigut Esreh. "They're learning there's differences in being a Jew in the U.S. and being a Jew in Israel." But this mifgash, or encounter, with the Diller Teen Fellows is just one component of a yearlong project to educate both the American and Israeli teens on Jewish identity. Both groups have been learning about each others' cultures and lifestyles since December. Later this year, the tables will be turned when the 20 Bay Area youth take a three-week journey to northern Israel. "Partnership 2000 takes things to a whole other level," explained Victoria Blint, teen director of the Israel Center. "It allows these teens to meet as human beings and build sustainable relationships with people who are on one level very similar yet, at the same time so completely different." One clear example is the paths students take after high school. "In Israel everything is so obvious," said Maoz. "You finish high school, you go to the army. Here it's not like that." Ofra Keny, a 15-year-old member of Manhigut Esreh, agreed. "We don't see life without the army," she said. "Just like American kids look forward to going to college, we look forward to going into the army." As for the lingering possibility of war, it's something these teens have gotten used to. "Because we're so near to the Lebanon border, every few weeks or months there's shooting in the Metulla area," said Erez Levit, 17. "But it's become a style of life." Keny agreed. "It's been happening since we were born so we're used to it," she said. "Sometimes there's fear, but mostly we're normal kids living a normal life." Levit added with great pride: "It's a perfect place. Everything is there—almost. If you ever need something else you can always drive down to Tel Aviv." Another difference Keny noted was what she called the more stringent religious practices of American Jews. "They go to synagogue, they keep their mitzvah—religion takes a much more important part in their lives than ours," she said. "In Israel where everyone is primarily Jewish, we take our religion for granted. Culture is more important to us than religion." Despite these differences, the Israeli teens, who were here for 12 days, said they had no problem getting along with the Diller Teen Fellows. "The connection was very good," said Sabag. "We had a lot to talk about. Some of them told me they want to come to Israel and serve in the army." "We were alike and not alike, but mostly alike," said 17-year-old Amit Itay. "I was afraid at first that the connection between us wouldn't work, but it did." In addition to learning about the American Jewish community and meeting with other Jewish teens, the Israelis also got the opportunity to mix in the general community and do a service project. "Not everyone's Jewish here," said Maoz, explaining that being the minority is a foreign idea for these teens. "Here there are different types of people and different types of societies." Blint agreed. "There are many different components that make our community a whole," she said. "We want them to see that." Among the teens' memorable experiences was spending an afternoon serving food to the homeless at Glide Memorial Church in San Francisco. "One of the girls from our group said she was scared and didn't know how she'd react to the homeless because we've never encountered anything like this in our part of Israel," said Keny. "But there's nothing to be scared of, nothing at all. Everyone has been very polite. It's just amazing to be able to help."

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