Jewish Herald-Voice (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 106, No. 48, Ed. 1 Thursday, January 23, 2014 Page: 4 of 28
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Page 4A
Jewish Herald-Voice
January 23, 2014
Up Close
Teen Israel Ambassadors Program bolsters Israel advocacy
The new cohort of high school junior Teen Israel Ambassadors: (back) Lori Actor,
Federation Israel Experiences coordinator; Sam Ennis; Neal Taibel; Hannah Gellman;
Samantha Rumann; Asaf Ahron, shaliach for Young Judaea; Courtney Vecera; Rebecca
Klaff; Roni Buchine; Claire Foster; Sandra Finkelman, chair of the Federation’s Bureau
of Jewish Education; Maya Kadosh, vice deputy consul general of the Israel Consulate
to the Southwest; Neal Lazarus, Middle East expert and director of Awesome Seminars;
(front) Breanna Word, Rifqa Sa’Aadat, Alanna Van Nostrand, Hannah Brookner, Alana
Rubinsky, Rachel Aaronson and Raizel Adler.
A new cohort of 15 high school
juniors joined the Jewish Federation
of Greater Houston’s Teen Israel
Ambassadors Program this past
fall, and they already have begun
expanding their Israel knowledge and
advocacy skills.
The Teen Israel Ambassadors
Program brings together select high
school juniors and seniors from
across the greater Houston area to
learn about Israeli history and anti-
Israel and anti-Semitic challenges
they may face on college campuses.
During the two-year program,
the teens learn effective advocacy
skills to combat situations they may
encounter. Participants are nominated
for the competitive program by local
congregational schools, day schools
and youth movements.
The funding for this initiative
is made possible by the Jewish
Federation of Greater Houston’s
Fund for the Jewish Future, along
with generous local donors. During
the program, students participate in
informational and training sessions
with local and guest facilitators and
receive an iPad to apply and advance
their Israel engagement. Teen Israel
Ambassadors began in 2011, and this
is the fourth group to go through the
program. Two classes already have
completed their training, and the
third class will graduate this spring.
The new group of 15 juniors is
learning Israel history and digital
advocacy skills, while the 12 seniors
are developing and implementing a
culmination project. Past projects
have included creating blogs, videos,
books, youth group programs and
presentations about Israel to help
explain the various issues involved to
other teens.
One of the highlights of the juniors
program this past fall was an all-
day seminar with world-renowned
Middle East expert, Neil Lazarus, in
November. Other Israel educators
include The Emery/Weiner head of
school Stuart Dow; Jewish Herald-
Voice associate editor Michael
Duke; North American CEO of
Honest Reporting Gary Kenzer; and
professor at The Hebrew University
of Jerusalem and political analyst
Reuven Hazan.
New to the program is the
opportunity to participate in state
and national programs, such as the
Federation Community Relations
Committee’s “Day in Austin,” which
was held on Jan. 23, 2013, where
a group from the Houston Jewish
community met with state lawmakers
on issues of importance to the
community.
“Participating in the Day in
Austin was one of the most exciting,
empowering experiences of my
life,” said former Teen Ambassador
Jonathan Dror, who graduated the
program and Bellaire High School in
spring 2013. “My fellow students and
I had numerous, meaningful policy
discussions with legislators, on behalf
of Houston’s Jewish community.”
Dror currently participates in Young
Judaea Year Course in Israel.
From Nov. 3-5, 2013, seniors Will
Levine, Rebecca Galor and Leah
Nadel participated in AIPAC’s annual
Schusterman Advocacy Institute High
School Summit in Washington. They
joined more than 400 high school
students, representing 181 public and
private schools across the country.
Participants were exposed to
proven methods of articulating their
commitment to Israel; the importance
of engaging members of Congress and
Leah Nadel, Rebecca Galor and Will
Levine attended the AIPAC Schusterman
Advocacy Institute High School Summit in
Washington.
Shira Yoram, Glen Mueller and Jonathan
Dror, at the Federation’s Day in Austin.
candidates for Congress; and how
to effectively make the case for the
U.S.-Israel relationship. And, Natalie
Engel, Joseph Schwartzberg, Gilad
Hampel and Samantha Harris joined
the Teen Ambassadors to lobby in
U.S. Rep. John Culberson’s office.
High school senior Nadel said the
most memorable sessions for her at
the summit were “The Search for
Peace” and “Engagement Petitions
and Leadership Statements.” She said,
“The speaker for the session on peace
resolutions did such an amazing
job of describing exactly why there
is conflict in the Middle East -
something that I understood very
See Advocacy on Page 16A
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care professionals, as well as visiting
with children and families. His stops
included University of Houston College
of Social Work; Ronald McDonald
House, Houston; Children’s Memorial
Hermann Hospital; Beth Yeshurun Day
School; Bertha Alyce Early Childhood
Center; Shriners Hospital for Children,
Houston; LBJ Teen Clinic; and Las
Americas middle school.
Gordon made a similar trip to Texas
in fall 2011. Both visits were co-sponsored
by the Houston-based Consulate General
of Israel to the Southwest.
“We brought Jeff to Houston as a
way to give back to the community,
which is very important to us,” said Guy
Cohen, Cultural Affairs officer at the
Israeli consulate.
Consulate staff accompanied
Gordon at his Ronald McDonald House
visit on Jan. 13, where they served lunch
to families with children undergoing
treatment at Houston’s world-renowned
Texas Medical Center.
Cohen said that medical clowning
has become a widespread and highly
successful field in Israel.
“People use it not only in hospitals
and medical situations, but it’s
starting now to come into school
and even businesses,” he said. □
being jewish matters
M With your support, the Federation funds
| 1 programs like the American Jewish
Joint Distribution Committee’s Baby
Help in Argentina, which provides poor
families with young children essential
supplies and supportive activities, and
helps them celebrate Jewish holidays
and lifecycle events. Nearly 600 at-risk
Jewish children in Argentina receive baby formula and other food
aid, vitamins, medicines, vaccines, diapers, and various pieces
of baby equipment. There is also a Baby Help day care center
in Buenos Aires so parents can find and maintain jobs. Through
these social services and gatherings, Baby Help is instilling
Jewish tradition and a sense of belonging among families who
may otherwise feel estranged from the Jewish community.
fW Jewish Federation
OF GREATER HOUSTON
www.houstonjewish.org
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Samuels, Jeanne F. Jewish Herald-Voice (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 106, No. 48, Ed. 1 Thursday, January 23, 2014, newspaper, January 23, 2014; Houston, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth544342/m1/4/: accessed May 21, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; .