Fashionistas for Israel: Hip T-shirts, Golda Meir jean jackets help JNF

By Sara Armet (JNFuture NYC)

It's T-shirt time! The highly anticipated JNF National Conference is right around the corner, October 26-29, in Phoenix, and we are so excited to be back with our second annual "Johnny + Sara: Fashionistas for Israel" campaign.

This fall, Jonathan Solomon (JNFuture Tampa) and I relaunched our fundraising initiative with brand new offerings and fresh "products with a purpose." Through the sale of our original T-shirt and limited-edition designs, JNFuture is shaping the landscape of of Israel. One hundred percent of our profits go to JNF. Our call to action: the recent Emergency Town Hall Series for the Gaza Border Crisis.

What was your first time like? Reflections of an Israel newbie

By Lori Feldman

If someone would have asked me BEFORE my landing in Israel, "What is one word you would use to describe your first visit to Israel?" I most likely would have said "amazing," "inspirational," or maybe even "unexpected." Now that my trip is complete, the word I would use is "family."  

Everywhere we turned, people treated our group like family. We were welcomed to experience life from a perspective of being home. We were made to feel we have always been family and would continue to be no matter where we call home at the end of the trip.

In the Judaean hills, a JNF Campus Fellow revels in nature and history

JNF's Campus Fellows program immerses carefully selected college students across the country in JNF's work. The fellows then help create a JNF presence on their campuses.


By Keren Radbil, JNF Campus Fellow from UMass Amherst

As a student of natural-resource conservation, sustainability, and farming, I was fortunate to spend the past few weeks interning with the JNF's restored historical Sataf park on the outskirts of Jerusalem. The work I've done was unique and an amazing opportunity to not only be immersed in nature but explore a landscape with significant cultural and historical meaning.

Dad's heartfelt words to his daughter, an IDF solider with special needs

Israel Air Force member Nofar.

JNF-supported program Special in Uniform integrates young people with disabilities into the Israel Defense Forces so they can contribute to society like all others. Avi Choresh, the father of a Special in Uniform soldier, wrote a letter to his daughter when she completed her IDF service recently. Here it is, translated. 

Nofar, our dear and charming daughter,

Today is a very special and meaningful day for you. And, of course, a special day for us as your family members. We love, cherish, and appreciate you very much for your work and contribution to society and the community.

Today you conclude an important and significant chapter in your life. You are embarking on a new and independent journey, as you return to civilian life, after five years during which you volunteered and contributed as much as you could to the state of Israel.

At a high school like no other, Israel is the classroom for six weeks

Summer session students at AMHSI-JNF listen to instructor Danny Stein on a Tel Avi beach. 

By Mara Fahl

Their bus pulls up next to the park that hugs the Tel Aviv shoreline and the high-schoolers stream off and run straight for the playground. But rather than climb the structures and play on the swings, they scramble through their backpacks for their notebooks. The energy and excitement at being outside seems normal for a group of teens, but these students are part of an experience that is anything but typical.

They have had the worldly experience of traveling to an archeological dig at Tel Gezer, where they explored ancient Canaanite society; to Masada, where they learned of the Israelites' triumphs and downfalls; to the Galilee, where they encountered crusader sites alongside Israel’s natural beauty; and to too many more places to name. These students have elected to spend their summer at Jewish National Fund's Alexander Muss High School in Israel (AMHSI-JNF) and they're studying history intensively while earning high school and even college credit.

LOTEM's accessible trails let father and son hike together for first time

Editor's note: At the end of this post you'll find details on how to enter a raffle that benefits LOTEM and could win you round-trip tickets to Israel. 


By Mitch Tepper

I was left disabled by a diving accident in 1982 and felt a personal connection to LOTEM-Making Nature Accessible and its work with children and adults with special needs. In the summer of 2009, my son Jeremy celebrated his becoming a bar mitzvah in Israel and raised more than $2,000 for the organization as part of his tzedakah project.

Saluting Doron Almog, military hero and champion for the disabled, for Israel Prize win

Major General (Res.) Doron Almog at Aleh Negev. 

Major General (Res.) Doron Almog, one of the heroes of the famous Operation Entebbe and founder of Aleh Negev-Nahalat Eran, a Jewish National Fund partner and world-class rehabilitative village for the disabled in southern Israel, has been awarded the 2016 Israel Prize for lifetime achievement and exceptional contribution to the nation. 

The annual prize is awarded to Israeli citizens or organizations that have displayed excellence in the fields of the humanities, social sciences, and Jewish studies; the natural and exact sciences; culture, arts, communication; and sports. 

"JNF is proud to be a disabilities and special-needs program partner with Doron Almog," said Russell F. Robinson, JNF's chief executive officer. "His amazing accomplishment of building Aleh Negev-Nahalat Eran has made an incredible difference in countless lives, and we salute his efforts, dreams, vision, and enduring commitment. His brilliant and compassionate spirit defines the people of Israel."

North Americans with disabilities meet Israelis 'just like them,' and it's profound

Howard Blas (in the white shirt) meets soldiers with special-needs at the Palmachim Air Force base in Israel.
With him is IDF Lt. Col. (Res.) Tiran Attia, director of Special in Uniform. 

By Howard Blas 

In the Hebrew school of my youth, we took great pride in bringing a quarter each session to put in the blue and white JNF pushke. As Tu B’Shvat approached, we worked extra hard to raise money to plant trees in Israel. On our Hebrew high school trip to Israel, we took pride in actually planting trees with our own hands. 

Fast forward more than 30 years, and I find myself blessed to share my love of Israel with young adults with developmental and intellectual disabilities. Every two years, my colleagues at the Ramah Israel Institute and I organize an Israel trip for a group of participants in the Tikvah special-needs programs from our various Ramah camps in the United States and Canada. On these trips, we learn and experience so much. One thing we have learned is that JNF is still actively involved in planting trees and dealing with Israel’s water resources, while also creating great programs to make sure people with disabilities are included in all aspects of Israeli society. 

Volunteering with Israel's disabled brings tears -- both of amazement and frustration

LOTEM volunteer Rachel Waldman, the author of this post (right) with a LOTEM participant. 

By Rachel Waldman

Having spent many summers in Israel, I have profound memories of the people, the culture, and the land. Who can't help but fall in love with the waterfalls of Ein Gedi, the white sand by the Dead Sea. The rolling hills and lush green fields in the north. The land of Israel is as much a part of daily life there as the people, the culture, and the history. 

Hiking in beautiful Israel -- the quintessential experience. 

That is why LOTEM-Making Nature Accessible plays such an integral role in creating an inclusive environment for all members of Israeli society. LOTEM makes nature accessible to everyone, including those who otherwise wouldn't be able to engage with the land that so many of us love. 

According to a 2014 study by the Myers-JDC Brookdale Institute, about 20 percent of Israelis have some kind of special need. That means that one-fifth of the population does not have the ability to fully connect with nature and the land in the way so many others do. Their families, as well, are limited in where they can go and what they can do. Do you bring the rest of your family on a hike if you have one child in a wheelchair? One child who is blind? One child who will struggle with a walker? Before LOTEM was created, this 20 percent of the population and their families were missing out on one of the most significant parts of Israel: the land. 

Visiting an Israeli facility for the disabled changed my family forever

Robin Dermer and her husband, record producer and cantorial soloist Lawrence Dermer (pictured right), performed 

for Aleh Negev residents in 2007, along with the Dermer children. 

By Robin Dermer 

Our daughter was born with an underlying neuromuscular disorder. By the time she was 7, her club feet were corrected, her muscle tone was improving substantially, and I took my family to Israel for healing, closure, a thank-you-to-god for helping us through her very difficult beginning. It was important for me to set an example for my older sons of how blessed we were to have the resources, care, and services for our daughter in her early years. 

One of the visits on the trip was to Aleh Negev, a rehabilitative facility for the severely disabled, to show our kids what it was like for children with special needs in Israel. I chose Aleh because it was founded on an underlying belief that mirrored my own -- a focus on potential rather than disability. The mere existence of Aleh exemplified that against all odds everything is possible. If you can envision something you can create it.

Nine years without Eran: A dad's deeply moving eulogy for his disabled son

It's been nine years since Major General Doron Almog's beloved son Eran died at age 23. To mark that occasion, Almog delivered the following words at his son's gravesite in Israel last week. Almog and his wife Didi established Aleh Negev-Nahalat Eran in their son's name to provide high-level medical and rehabilitative care to severely disabled adults and children. JNF is an Aleh Negev partner. 

Doron Almog and his son, Eran, who passed away in 2007. 

When you were born, we called you Eran -- for my brother Eran, who never came back from the war, who lay bleeding for a week near his burning tank before his lifeless body was rescued and brought home.

When you were just 8 months old, our dream -- the dream of parents everywhere -- was shattered. The psychologist at Assaf HaRofeh Hospital diagnosed you as suffering with autism combined with intellectual disability.  Apparently you would remain as you were that day, a baby several months of age, for as long as you lived, and you would most probably never learn to speak.

She was right. During all your 23 years, you never spoke one word. You never called me abba. And yet, despite this, you were to become the greatest teacher of my life. Your silent scream pierced through my soul, penetrating every fiber of my being with an endless discourse about the place of children and people just like you in an achievement-oriented society, one that measures a person’s worth by the yardstick of ability and skill.

JNF's Jewish Disabilities Action Month: 'Because awareness isn't enough'

While February is known as Jewish Disability Awareness Month, Jewish National Fund is rebranding it as an "action month" to ensure that everyone, regardless of individual challenges, is able to feel that they are supported and belong.

Nearly one in five people in the U.S. and one in eight in Israel live with a disability. JNF and its partners work daily to help children and adults in Israel who have physical, sensory, mental health, and intellectual disabilities enjoy a better quality of life.

JNF partners include Aleh Negev-Nahalat Eran, LOTEM-Making Nature Accessible, Red Mountain Therapeutic Riding Center at Kibbutz Grofit, and Special in Uniform, which integrates those with disabilities into the Israel Defense Forces. In addition, the new JNF Task Force on Disabilities has been created to bring partner organizations together to share resources and meet the needs of those with disabilities in Israel's north and south, where there are typically fewer services available.

An inclusive society is a better society: How Israel weaves the disabled into its fabric

Throughout February, to mark Jewish Disability Awareness Month, we'll be featuring stories about special needs and inclusion in Israel. Look for them on this blog, as well as on JNF's main Facebook page, its Humans of JNF Facebook page, and Instagram.  

Photo: Miriam Braun

Evan Samuels, one of the special-needs workers at 

Kishor Winery. 

By Noah Alhadeff

From Eilat to the Golan Heights, there are dozens of wineries in Israel. Each one operates pretty much the same as the next: Seeds are planted, grapes are grown, grapes get mashed, juice gets aged, and wine gets bottled. But at Kishor Winery in Israel's north, something, well, special is happening. 

Along the wine-making timeline you’ll see adults with special needs pitching in to do things like prune the grapevines and work in the bottling warehouse. Their disabilities range from the behavioral to the physical and mental, but one thing remains constant. They're being included just like everyone else.

In a country where nearly one in five adults has some form of disability, according to the Myers-JDC Brookdale Institute, it's not hard to find organizations that make true disability inclusion their imperative. Kibbutz Kishorit, where the Kishor Winery is located, is just one of them. "Each member contributes to the community according to his ability and takes from the community according to his need," the kibbutz says.

Shai and Eran: Autistic boy and IDF lieutenant colonel shared special bond

Photo: Alon Alshech

From left to right: Yossi Kahana, Lt. Col Shai Moskovitch, General Doron Almog, Rev. Michael J. Graham, Stanley Chesley, Nina Paul, Ed Paul.

By Doron Almog

Eleven years ago, Israeli Air Force Commander Eliezer Shkedi invited me to speak at an officers’ induction ceremony at Tel Nof Air Force Base. While we were all mingling, engaged in small talk around the pool, a young major suddenly approached me. 

"I’m Shai, your son Eran's friend," he told me. 

"But Eran has no friends," I replied. "He can’t have friends because he's autistic, and he's also severely cognitively disabled." 

"You have no idea how smart he is," Shai continued. 

"Really?! And who are you, might I ask?"

This is what it looks like when 200 immigrants land in Israel to start over

Photo: Mimi Banks

A message to new olim arriving 
at Ben Gurion Airport: "You made it!" 

By Leslie Katz

Happy September! For many, the High Holy Days are a time for forging new beginnings. All this month, to mark the start of the new year, we'll feature stories of #JNF #NewBeginnings here on the Jewish National Fund blog, and on JNF's Facebook and Instagram pages.

You'll read about Rahma, a severely disabled little girl abandoned by her parents at birth and living at Aleh Negev. A couple who regularly visited her at the facility for special-needs residents just adopted her and brought her to her new home. 

You'll learn more about life in Halutza, a Negev desert community populated by Jewish settlers evacuated from Gaza during Israel's 2005 disengagement. Where there was once only sand, these pioneers have built a thriving world of houses, schools, solar fields and farms -- in the span of just 10 years. 

And what could possibly represent a new beginning more than packing up and moving to a new country? In the photo gallery below, you'll see what it looks like when a planeload of North American immigrants disembark at Ben Gurion Airport and experience their first few moments as Israeli citizens. 

A second trip and a new view: Seeing Israel through a JNF lens

Photo: Robert Kerzner

The author rings a chime in Aleh Negev's sensory garden, created to stimulate the senses of the facility's disabled residents.

By Lauren Katz

I was a sophomore in college when I visited Israel for the first time on a Birthright trip. As I’m sure most Birthright alumni will tell you, the trip was a wonderful experience. It’s surreal to finally see places you’ve heard about your entire life -- Masada, Yad Vashem, Ben Yehuda Street.

I remember the excitement I felt as we approached the Western Wall. There was plenty of nervous giggling as our group walked toward it holding hands with our eyes closed. Once we reached a ledge in front of the Wall, our group leader told us to open our eyes. Then, silence. There it was. The Wall we pray toward. The Wall I have a painting of in my living room. The Wall I made out of sugar cubes for an art project at Jewish day school. In that short 10-day trip, I immensely deepened the connection I felt to a place thousands of miles away.

Five years later, I returned to Israel for a second trip, this time on a Jewish National Fund mission for digital-media professionals who traveled there to learn more about JNF projects and hopefully bring greater awareness to them. I experienced the same sense of belonging I did on my first visit, but the itinerary was completely different. Birthright -- which seeks to strengthen young people’s Jewish identity and solidarity with Israel -- is like I-80, the quickest, most-traveled route across the U.S. The digital-media mission is Route 50, the road less traveled but full of must-see sights, with less congestion and more inside, on-the-ground views into the daily lives of Israelis.

Special-needs IDF soldiers pay emotional visit to site of Holocaust masscre

A select group of IDF soldiers with special needs were chosen to travel to Poland on a delegation to revisit history. 

By Ariana Goldsmith

I am sitting on the bus looking out the window on the way to Treblinka, one of the many death camps we visited this week, along with Auschwitz, Birkenau, Maidanek, and others. Today is the second-to-last day of a very crazy and intense week. Tomorrow night, our special group, called Hashachar and consisting of 21 people with special needs and 11 chaperones, will board the plane back to Israel, our homeland. I don't think I have ever been more proud to be a religious Jew living in Israel and to be serving in the army in a role very different than the standard fighting positions or desk jobs.

Deep gratitude for outings that bring domestic-violence victims into nature

Photo: Haifa Women's Crisis Shelter

Earlier this month, we shared the story of a program called Mother Nature, operated by our partner LOTEM - Making Nature Accessible, that makes it possible for women and children who've been victims of domestic abuse to enjoy healing outings in nature. Below, we share an emotional testimony to the uniqueness and importance of this program, which has recently been threatened due to funding cuts. While a generous anonymous JNF donor stepped in to help the program survive, it still is in need of help, as each outing costs $2,500 and LOTEM's goal is to take residents of different shelters out four times per year. Learn more here. 


Shalom, 

We just returned from a fantastic nature outing that your wonderful guide Tali led. The outing succeeded to engage the children and mothers of the shelter who are all ages, colors, and background! 

The children splashed their feet in the Ami Spring and on the Emek HaShalom Ecological Farm, they drew water from the well, pressed grapes and made mosaic artwork. Despite the heat that we were nervous about, the activities were in the shade and there was such a pleasant atmosphere. The mothers and children enjoyed it very much. 

Mother Nature program: Helping battered women heal through the great outdoors

A child's depiction of the LOTEM Mother Nature outing. 

By Miriam Braun 

Mothers and children splashing in a stream.

There are currently 13 shelters for battered women and children in Israel, housing up to 650 residents per year. Imagine the fear, isolation, and trauma experienced by these victims, not being able to leave their residences alone, afraid of being recognized or followed. 

LOTEM - Making Nature Accessible, recognizing the need to promote trust, independence, and leadership in these moms and kids, has developed the Mother Nature program to provide days of relief and respite to them through the healing power of nature.

LOTEM -- which offers educational outdoor activities throughout the country for children and adults with special needs -- also guides trips for battered women and their kids, from newborns to teens, into parks, trails, and quiet streams. There, participants learn about their surroundings, including lessons about ecology and seasonal patterns in vegetation and animals that they can relate to their own stormy lives. 

The natural surroundings allow the participants to relax and let go. Hadas, director of a Haifa shelter for battered women, says that one day in nature often does more for the women and children than several therapy sessions.

Bustling Mahane Yehuda shuk slows down to welcome wheelchair users

Photo: LOTEM - Making Nature Accessible

By Alana Kessler

Nature is everywhere. Depending on where one lives, the landscape may differ, but the outdoors and all it provides is available to anyone. But although nature is available to all, it is not accessible to all. For people with intellectual or physical disabilities, activities such as exploring a neighborhood, going on a hike, and even smelling fresh flowers become a challenge, and for some, might not even be an option. 

LOTEM-Making Nature Accessible makes limitations disappear by adapting nature programs for individuals with special needs in an appropriate and engaging way.

I started volunteering with LOTEM this winter, and since my first visit to a weekly nature club for adults with intellectual and physical disabilities, I have been inspired and amazed by all LOTEM does. Holding true to its mission of "making nature accessible," LOTEM provides school programs inside and outside the classroom, clubs, day trips, special events, and much more.