Last August, our family of four packed whatever we could fit into our two cars, ready to drop off both of our daughters in a single day. The first stop was JFK airport, and then on to the University of Maryland. But that wasn’t the only gamble we took that day. 

Our younger daughter, Samara, got on a flight to Israel for a fall semester at Alexander Muss High School in Israel (Muss). Only a few weeks had passed since the Twelve-Day War with Iran, and regional tensions still loomed large.  Six months later, and with the gift of hindsight, it was the best decision we could have made. 

My family lives in a suburb of New York City with a large Jewish population, where I serve as senior rabbi for the local Reform synagogue.  Despite these factors, Muss provided a level of education, experience, and identity formation that could not be achieved otherwise.  It’s one thing to learn about Jewish history in a religious school classroom.  It’s entirely another to read the Book of Joshua while sitting amongst the Judean ruins of Lakhish, or learning about the British Mandate period from within the walls of a former prison in Akko.  Add to this experience the fellow teen sojourners, supportive madrichim (instructors), who are deeply passionate and masterful teachers, and you can understand why when Samara returned home in December, she said that, while she always learned about Judaism, only now did she really “get it”.  This experience impacted her sense of Jewish identity and her connection to Israel in ways that will pay dividends for years to come.   

Perhaps the most impactful experience for Samara was traveling to Poland with her classmates and teachers.  Witnessing the remains of what was once the center of Ashkenazi Judaism, Samara fully grasped the importance of Israel and the need for the Jewish people to have a state of their own.  Walking around what was left of the Warsaw ghetto, the students came upon a large Palestinian flag with graffiti accusing Jews of being baby killers.  But unlike the tragic victims of the once cherished city, Samara and her classmates knew that there was a place they could go to find solidarity and protection.  In that moment, the case for Israel stood for itself.     

The young woman who returned home in December was significantly different from the student we dropped off at JFK airport.  Through the program, Samara had grown more independent, responsible, and confident in her Jewish identity.  Her experience at Muss deepened her thirst for Jewish knowledge and experiences—providing a sturdy foundation for a lifetime of engagement.  Her experience at Muss has undoubtedly unlocked doors for opportunities yet unknown.  For this, my family and I are eternally grateful.