Stories from Israel

Last month, the ImpactIsrael team visited with colleagues and partners in Israel. Samantha Sisisky, Senior Director of Stewardship and Communications shares her thoughts and reflections.

Reflecting on our recent staff trip to Israel, I am overwhelmed with the multitude of stories we encountered. Each one is a testament to the resilience, strength, and spirit of the people we met. These stories include:

• the principal at a high school in southern Israel whose student body overnight has become “at-risk” as they have taken in kids from Kibbutz Nir Oz, including 3 returned children hostages;

• the Yemin Orde student from Ukraine who has made Israel his home and aspires to be a paratrooper in the IDF after he graduates;

• the Arab principal in Acco who has used the Village Way to transform his school into a desired place for students and teachers alike;

• the counselor at Yemin Orde who has returned from reserve duty and is speaking to a therapist regularly so that he can be present for his family and Yemin Orde kids.

(front row: Ben Marchette, Daniel Topaz (VWEI Educator), Dotan Levi, and Rachel Krueger) (back row: Lianne Goldsmith, Samantha Sisisky, Melanie Fine, Pamela Partridge, and Hanniel Levenson)

During our visit, we sat down with Dotan Levi, a colleague of mine who runs the Village Way Educational Institute. I admire Dotan for his patience, intelligence, and ability to connect with educators and students. He was explaining the basic principles he emphasizes for educators, the ABCs: Authenticity, Belief in Human Beings, and Caring. I stopped Dotan and asked him, “How can we keep the belief in human beings in our heart after everything that has happened? How can educators bring that to their students after what they have been through?”

In short, he told me, it is hard, and it will take a long time. Rebuilding homes and physical spaces will be much easier than the redemption of the soul that so many young people in Israel are yearning for. It is OK to hold all this pain in one hand while also holding hope and optimism in the other. These kids have lost faith in humanity, but it is our job to restore their faith in humanity, to show them that kindness and compassion still exist.

While visiting one high school, we were lucky enough to watch 11th grade students reveal the theme they had decided upon for the upcoming Purim holiday, complete with a choreographed performance with music, costumes, and props. Along with their teachers, the students wrestled with how to celebrate the joy of Purim while also holding the solemnity of the current situation in Israel. We watched a joyful and spirited song and dance from students. Perhaps most indicative of life in Israel right now was the image of the posters announcing the themes for Purim (childhood stories), alongside the ever-present yellow ribbon to keep the hostages in our hearts and minds.

We are holding two things in our hearts: sorrow and joy, anger and optimism, fear and hope. It was an honor and privilege to spend time in Israel with my colleagues and to hear stories from educators, students, and people from across all walks of life.

My colleagues and I hope to share more of these stories with you in the coming months. In the meantime, follow ImpactIsrael (@ImpactIsraelNow) on social media as we continue to share these stories of resilience.