Jacob Shapiro, son of Virginia Palacio and Todd Shapiro, just graduated Lausanne Collegiate School (and is pictured [right] enjoying food in Jerusalem with friends Jack Benjamin, Connor Rubin, and Anders Kennedy). Memphis Jewish Federation’s Lemksy Endowment Fund provided him with a Teen Israel Experience grant to help offset the cost of his NFTY program in Israel last summer. All rising high school juniors and seniors in the Memphis Jewish community are eligible for grants up to $3,000 to attend a recognized teen summer or semester program in Israel. Applications for Summer 2023 will open in the Fall of 2022.
By: Jacob Shapiro
My time in Israel was one of the most defining months of my life. It opened my eyes to the history of Judaism, Israel, and buses, more than I have ever experienced.
The first part of the trip was exciting because I went to New Jersey to hang out for the night and meet people from the other camps who were all going to Israel. It was a fun night, and I was excited about staying in a hotel with my camp friends and not in a Jacobs camp cabin. When I landed in Tel-Aviv we were greeted by our tour guide. Immediately after stepping outside, it was noticeably clear we were experiencing a completely different culture. It was hot and everything was built out of what looked like a type of sandstone. However, the first thing that stood out to me was the security for passengers entering the country. Just like any other international flight, we needed passports and identification, but the distinguishable differences were the border control permits and passenger interviews.
The Eastern Mediterranean International School right outside of Tel Aviv was the first place we stayed. The school was a boarding school with housing and dining facilities. Surprisingly, the food was amazing, better than any other place we stayed. After a few days of orientation and talking about the itinerary for the next week, we had our first night out in the city of Tel-Aviv. The city of Tel-Aviv had a downtown that felt similar to Seattle but not quite as big as Chicago or New York. We had a fun night with some amazing ice cream from a place recommended by the tour guides.
The second week was action packed because we traveled all over and stayed in the Negev desert for three days. I was worried I was going to spend three days in the desert and not shower the whole time, but it was the best part of the trip. The first day we hiked up Masada and saw the incredible sunrise, one of the prettiest things I have ever seen. We went to a community pool in the desert which was very strange because I felt refreshed and relaxed and then looked around and realized I was in the middle of nowhere.
Masada was not the only thing that took away my breath. Though it was incredible, the Western Wall and the city of Jerusalem took my breath away, sent chills down my spine and dropped my jaw. I have never seen a city so perfect and beautiful. The image of the sun setting over the Golden Dome is still drilled in my head. I found that the people of Israel were genuinely welcoming and nice to our group.
In conclusion, Israel was a life changing trip, and I am so grateful for everything that made the stars align for the trip to happen not just for me, but for everyone.
Thank you to Memphis Jewish Federation’s Lemsky Endowment Fund for helping to make my NFTY summer Israel experience possible.