First Blogpost of Cohort 6!

By Hadas Nahar, Newton

It is so exciting to be writing this because this first post of our blog of signifies the amazing journey that we are all about to embark on for the next year and more. This past Sunday, we had our second workshop which was truly our first real sense of how a Diller workshop functions. To start it off, Rose gave a "One Minute Drash" based on the quote “It is a miserable thing to be ashamed of home” from Great expectations by Charles Dickens. She talked about how in order to open up and get to know each other, we can’t hide essentials aspects of who we are, even if we are embarrassed by them. Everyone will have the chance to give a mini "drash" at some point. If we hide parts of ourselves, in some sense we are lying to one another. Following that, we played a game of hot seat, and I myself took my turn in the chair. The questions were sometimes weird but often entertaining and the game was a great way to continue getting to know each other. We conducted a fake interview of the NPR interview For Whom Are We Responsible? which was followed up by interesting discussions in small groups. 

We met Shmaya Friedman, who will be our Madrich on our Shabbatonim. Shmaya is a young Chabad Rabbi from the North Shore, and his wife and two young daughters will be joining us. His family was a part of the Shabbatonim last year and they really enjoyed connecting to Diller. Shmaya works with teens of all backgrounds on the North Shore and he especially enjoys interacting with Diller Fellows.

         

 After finishing our discussions, we split up into two groups. Kineret and Ariana read out facts about every person in Cohort 6 and the two groups had to take an educated guess as to who the person was. It was a great way to continue getting a sense of who everyone is. Following this activity, Yitzhak gave us a Diller “Ted Talk” on the importance of focusing on finding your why in Diller and leadership. He asked us to think about why we were in Diller, and told us to “make it good” because we would be sharing it with everyone later. I know that when he said that, I thought that I was going to share out loud what my thoughts were but he proceeded to tell us that we had to keep this “why” in the back of our minds throughout our Diller journey. Instead of simply telling others our “why”, we were going to share this with other people by accomplishing these goals and living up to this “why”. I appreciated the message, and it made me think about the importance of “why” in not just Diller, but in everything you do. If there’s not a why, what is the point really?

After the speech, we began to plan the upcoming Shabbaton which I know I am super excited for and I’m sure everyone else is too. Channah and Ben were chosen to be the leaders of this Shabbaton; congratulations to them! We all chose an aspect of the Shabbaton to work on in small groups. I chose Havdalah. Havdalah was always one of my favorite parts of my camp, so I am inspired to make Diller havdalah just as amazing, but in it’s own way. Our group had really good discussions about what makes a great Havdalah and how to execute that. Afterwards, we chose various committees to be on. I am personally very excited for the bonding committee because I know we are going to plan great activities that everyone will love and that will bring us all closer.  To close this workshop, we wrote down ways that play out the Diller Core Values in our lives, and then drew visible connections to each other to signify the meaningful connections that we will make in Diller. We then segued into coming up with a list of five values to represent our Cohort. Despite some disagreement about arrow placement or wording of our values, we came up with a list that everyone was satisfied with. Lastly, Eitan gave us his One Minute Drash on how Cohort 6 can make a name for themselves and can really work to be something great. He connected this to Yom Kippur and how we sort of reinvent ourselves yearly. This workshop made me so excited for future workshops, shabbatons and of course, our Israel trip this summer. Our cohort is made up of such a great, diverse group of people who I already know are going bond really well and learn a lot from one another. 

 

JCC Boston Cohort 5 Young Professional Coaches

Giving Back: Cohort 5's Spontaneous Summer of Service

 By Isabel Feinstein, Cohort 5

As is well known by the family and friends of the Boston Diller Teen Fellows, our summer trip to Israel was postponed due to the current events in the area. Thanks to our staff and parents, we have been able to participate in a wide array of group activities during the time we were meant to be away. Many of these opportunities to spend time together manifested in the form of volunteering. Giving back to the local community felt to us like the best thing we could do as a cohort in these circumstances. Once we found out we wouldn’t be going to Israel, we all began making individual plans to occupy ourselves for the few weeks following; therefore, it was understood that not everyone would be able to participate in everything. I am proud of how flexible everybody has been, and how we have adapted to working in smaller subsets of the group.

 The first volunteer event I participated in was an afternoon at Community Servings, a meal program for AIDS patients and their families. Along with Hannah, Sarah, Naomi, Dan, Ranen, Hillel, Josh P., Ilana and Liana, I prepared meals at the location in Jamaica Plain. It was a lot of fun to be with some of the cohort while doing something meaningful, even though we had to wash our hands about five times before we were allowed in the kitchen! The staff working there were funny and personable, and the facility was really nice and well organized. Some of the group had been to Community Servings before, and I know we are all interested in returning at some point, whether it be with Diller or otherwise. The next day, Liana had signed us up to serve dinner at Woods-Mullen Shelter in the South End. It took me a while to get there (shoutout to Hillel for waiting for me) but once I made it, it was a lot of fun. Dan, Izzy, Emma, Hillel, Adin, Sarah and Liana also participated. It was definitely different from Community Servings, since we actually interacted with the people the food was for. That was interesting as every guest was very different: there was a notable mix of age, gender, race, class, and religion. Overall, the people we served were lovely and gracious to us and made the experience better and more comfortable. One woman even told us that she was a part of the greater Boston Jewish community, and made it clear she was familiar with the towns, schools and synagogues we come from. That surprised us all, as we didn’t expect someone who could be one of our mothers to be at Woods-Mullen, but it was also illuminating. Poverty is not confined to one group of people. 

 These two days were just a couple of the many things Cohort 5 has done this summer, but each event has been significant. I am impressed by how fast we recovered from our disappointment, proud that we have been able to make these past few weeks productive, and grateful that I have been able to spend time with my friends.

Dillers on the Farm!

Volunteering at the Needham Community Farms
By Rachel Goodman, Cohort 5

As a continuation of the our "Spontaneous Summer of Service" the Diller Fellows volunteered at the Needham Community Farm.  When we arrived, we were warmly greeted by Larisa, the head farmer.  She explained the Needham Community Farm’s goals, and why it was so special: the farm donates all of its “best” produce to food pantries, so that people who could not necessarily afford organic food in a grocery store could still have access to freshly grown food.  

Then, we headed over to the garden beds to start our first project.  We split up into two groups and weeded two garden bed sections.  By doing this, Larisa explained, we were making room for more people to come and have their own personal gardening spots.  After we completed this assignment, we came back as one group to conquer a larger challenge: to weed the compost pile.  Larisa explained the importance of this project: if there were weeds in the compost pile, their seeds would drop in the dirt and then next year when that dirt was laid out, weeds would grow all over the farm.  By doing this job, we were ensuring that the farm would have a “weed free” start to the next season.  We climbed the large pile of compost and weeded almost everything in sight, big or small.  

As we worked, the pile of weeds in our wheelbarrow grew bigger and bigger, until we couldn’t fit anymore. After two hours, the job was complete!  The weeds were gone, and the compost pile looked much healthier.  We thanked Larisa for the fun opportunity, and left feeling happy that we had been able to help the farm and those who it serves.

 

 

 

Boston Teens Stand With Israel!

Written by Hannah Goldstein, Cohort 5 

The Diller Teen Fellows is a pluralistic, international, Jewish leadership program. Over the course of 15 months Fellows learn about themselves and the world around them through the four pillars of Diller: Tikun Olam, Leadership, Jewish Identity, and Israel. A huge part of the program revolves around a seminar in Israel where the Boston Cohort joins 19 other contingents to deepen their connections with and learn about the country.

Unfortunately, due to the hostilities in the region, this years’ trip was postponed until the Winter. Israel has been under attack from Hamas, a Palestinian terrorist organization that governs Gaza. Israeli civilians and soldiers alike have been constantly bombarded with rockets fired from Gazan territory. Thankfully, the Iron Dome (missile defense system) has been extremely successful, intercepting around 95% of the rockets. Not only has Hamas been firing rockets, it has built an array of tunnels infiltrating the border allowing the possibility of an invasion. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) have been fighting back to reduce these dangerous threats and protect the people of Israel.

Although we, the Diller Teen Fellows, do not always agree with every decision the Israel Government and IDF might make, we do agree that Israel has the absolute right, and in fact the obligation, to defend itself. We fully support Operation Protective Edge to end the violence perpetrated by Hamas and bring peace to both Israelis and Palestinians.

To compensate for our postponed trip and demonstrate our solidarity with Israel, our cohort decided to host an active, teen-specific gathering called #BostonTeensStandWithIsrael. We wanted to raise awareness in addition to making an impact, so we hosted stations where participants could take action.

Stations Included:

Care Packages for Israeli Children and Soldiers: A drive to collect items for children in the affected regions along with soldiers in the field, and packaged boxes to distribute through our Israeli counterparts. We have sent items to the Navy in Haifa through CJP in Haifa, The Aleh Negev Rehabilitation Center, and the Israel Forever Foundation.

Social Media: Individuals learned how to advocate for Israel and voice their opinions via social media. For example, Participants could log into their Facebook and choose an article (that they agreed with) to post.

#RaiseYourFlag Campaign: Participants could take pictures of themselves holding posters and signs that were supportive toward Israel. These pictures were sent to Israelis and posted on social media.

Video Messages for Soldiers: Individuals (or groups) could record a video message to send to soldiers articulating support or just a little more attention.

Homemade Cards for Children and Soldiers/Artists4Israel: Participants could draw pictures to place in bomb shelters and write letters to both children and soldiers.

In addition to our stations, we had guest speaker, Perry Newman, the director of Israel Advocacy from CJP. He spoke about the current conflict and how important it is that we, as teens, advocate for Israel. Dani Weinstein, the director of Young Adults at CJP, joined Mr. Newman and helped us plan the event. We were joined by special guests Ariel Liebhaber,. Ruth Kaplan, and Jill Smilow from the Living Bridges Committee through the Boston-Haifa Connection. In attendance also were members of the Board of the JCC and supporters of the Diller program.

We also discussed a tragic event that had happened the day before our program, in which a former Diller Teen Fellow from Rishon L'Tzion was killed in Gaza while serving in an elite unite. We spoke about Matan Gottlieb z''l and read words about him from a former Boston-Haifa staff member who was a friend of his, Maayan Haagbi. We lit a yartzheit candle for him; this reminded us all how this operation can hit us so close to home as Diller Teen Fellows.

The event was vibrant and successful. We had significantly more participants than expected and sent over 16 large care packages. We achieved our goals of raising awareness and taking action. We felt good to be able to contribute with this event and provide an outlet for other teens to also help make a difference. #BostonTeensStandWithIsrael!

For all photos of our event please click here.  To see a video montage of our messages to soldiers please click here!

 

Cohort 5 Summer Retreat in Narragansett

By Zoe Federman, Cohort 5


Since our seminar to Israel was postponed until December due to Operation Protective Edge, I thought it would be a fun and meaningful experience for everyone to go to my Narragansett, RI house for the weekend. Leading the weekend with Isabel Feinstein was amazing, especially because almost everyone was able to come. On Friday afternoon everyone met at the JCC to head off to RI. After facing some tiring traffic we all arrived in Narragansett ready to start the retreat. To kick it off, the Shabbat Committee led a short but beautiful service at the lake near my house. After, we headed back to the house for a staff led Ma’agal Lila. During it we were blindfolded and led into the backyard. There was a maze of strings set up crisscrossing and intersecting all around. We were all placed at different points and were told to start our “journeys”. Along the way we found little objects that we could choose to take with us or keep moving. The objects were scrolls of paper with different quotes on them, which we read aloud and discussed. 

We then devoured the Israeli chocolate brought back from Israel by our very thoughtful JCs and hung out until we all fell asleep. The next morning we decided to go to the beach pavilion to play board and card games, which shows how no one let the rain ruin the day. After lunch and a little relaxation, it was time for a beautiful Havdalah service. We then all piled into the cars to go get ice cream! It was delicious and super fun. We then all settled down for a fellow led Ma’agal Lila. We all stood in a circle, facing outwards, holding an unlit candle. The first person lit their candle and then chose the next person and lit their candle. Once everyone’s candle was lit, together we lit the fire pit. It showed how we all shine on our own, but when we come together we shine even brighter. 

After a full day of fun, we were all exhausted and went to sleep. Sunday morning the staff held a quick meeting about our future plans for our Impact Projects. We were all just throwing around ideas, but it made me very confident that our cohort’s projects will be a great success! Then, we all loaded into the cars to head to the Newport Cliff Walk. It was a great time to all sit together and take in the view. We took a little walk and then piled into the cars one last time to drive back to the JCC. This weekend was a great way to reconnect with the fellows and talk about the change of plans about Israel. 

Cohort 5 North American Seminar

Cohort 5 participated in the Diller North American Seminar from April 3rd-13th, 2014. The Haifa Diller Teens spent time in Boston exploring the city and getting to know their counterparts. We kicked off the weekend with a Shababton at Camp Ramah. We then had themed days during the week: Getting to Know Boston Day, Social Justice Day, Judaism in America Day, and Welcoming Diversity. For our fun social activity we got to enjoy a Red Sox game! Four Boston Fellows reflect below on their own highlights:

Galia Bernat, Needham: The Shabbaton, which kick-started NAS, was a truly special and eye-opening weekend. First off, by participating in workshops and activities the two cohorts were able to bond in a very short period of time. Regardless of the language barrier, meaningful friendships were able to form between everyone in the two groups. Also, by getting to know a whole new group of people, our cohort (Boston) was able to come together even more and be able to tackle problems even more effectively as one. One other significant aspect of the Shabbaton was breaking down cultural barriers between the Israeli’s and Americans. On the first day we met, we all drew what we though a “typical” Israeli teenager looked like, and the Israeli’s did that about an American teenager as well. By doing this, we were able to disprove and tackle the stereotypes that existed. We also did numerous activities discussing Judaism in America and Israel. How Judaism is seen and practiced in both countries is drastically different and it was eye opening to learn the difference in the denominations and practices in Israel versus in the US. The Shabbaton really prepared us all for the more in depth workshops that we participated in together for the rest of NAS


 

Emma Starr, Brookline As soon as I stepped off the bus, I realized that going to the Red Sox game with my best friends in the whole world was not going to be the same experience as going with my family. While we were getting our bags checked and going through security, I listened to the laughter of everyone. I heard the loud bursts of laughter from every single person. We walked up the stairs two by two and all of a sudden a bright light appeared out of the darkness. We all saw the giant field and the Israelis were in shock of the size and beauty. They could not take their eyes off the field as we all walked to our seats. Finally, the game started. Throughout the whole game, we were all cracking jokes and taking pictures and overall bonding. With all the rigorous programming over the last couple of days, it was nice to relax and do really fun things together.

 

Adin Feder, Newton: 
Hosting two Israelis at my house was absolutely the highlight of the North American Seminar. At first, the idea seemed slightly intimidating. I didn’t know if we would get along, be interested in the same things, and be able to communicate. However, from the moment I met my Israelis, I knew that my fears were unfounded. Over the course of our opening Shabbaton, I had the opportunity to get to know my Israelis, and we immediately bonded over singing some silly Hebrew songs that we all knew. Combining my Hebrew with their English allowed us to communicate seamlessly. I wanted to be able to spend as much time as with my Israelis, so once we got home from the opening Shabbaton, I moved my bed down to their room so we could stay in the same room. This worked out great, because it meant that we got to hang out with each other all the time every night, even if it meant that I was doing my homework while they caught up on the Israeli news. It was incredible how much we had in common. Besides for our mutual friends in Israel and America, we had very similar experiences and ideas, and had a great time discussing and debating a whole range of issues. It was fascinating to get the perspective of my peers from Israel, and to get to know them on a really special level, like family. We’ve stayed in touch since NAS, and

I can’t wait to see them this summer 
in Israel!

Josh Perlmutter, Holliston:

The West Roxbury youth group program was eye-opening for me.  I had never met other teenagers before who have lived such different lives than I have.  I enjoyed the discussion circles and the ice breakers that we did together.  In the discussions, I learned that not everyone in Massachusetts is able to attend good schools and I also learned about neighborhoods that can be dangerous, a concept almost alien to a suburban resident.  But even though these teenagers have hard lives, they seemed upbeat and capable of overcoming obstacles.  They were bright, charming, and friendly.  This exercise was a great way to see how others live.