From Kansas City to Chicago to Vienna and finally Tel Aviv, 40 Hillel students made it to Israel for KU Hillel’s Birthright trip in May.
The 12-day trip was held to create deeper connections to students’ Judaism, Israel, and bonds within the KU community.
The trip was staffed by Suzy Sostrin, Executive Director; Ally Fabes, Program Director; and Wendy Anderson, KU Hillel’s licensed therapist in partnership with Jewish Family Services, who led the Birthright Israel trip with an Israeli tour guide.
“Birthright Israel was an incredible experience for our students,” Sostrin said. “It was very meaningful to help students connect with their Jewish identity and build their love for Israel. One of the best moments was watching the students come together for Havdalah overlooking Jerusalem, embracing each other and the empowering experiences they were embarking on.”
The students experienced two Shabbats that bookended the trip. The first Shabbat was spent in Jerusalem and included time at the Western Wall, and the second Shabbat was spent up north. Some students chose to have b’nai mitzvot in Israel on the second Shabbat.
Highlights of the trip itinerary also included hiking up Masada, exploring Jerusalem’s Old City, visiting Yad Vashem and Mt. Herzel, and floating in the Dead Sea.
For many, these locations throughout Israel were familiar from years of religious school or summer camp, Lauren Berger, a junior, said.
“It was amazing going on Birthright and seeing places I had heard about my whole life that felt so abstract,” Berger said. “It made my Judaism feel much more concrete and history feel more like the present.”
Some of the Hillel students were already close friends before arriving at the airport, having met at Shabbat dinners or Jewish learning classes. Others were longtime camp friends. Bonding while stargazing by the Bedouin tents or making za’atar at a spice shop near the Kinneret formed deeper connections among the Jayhawks.
Demi Fine, a sophomore, had traveled to Israel while in high school and was excited to return to Israel with her Hillel friends — and make new ones.
“For me, Birthright gave me the opportunity to not only strengthen my connection to Judaism but also my connection to friends new and old from KU,” Fine said after returning from the trip.
The friendships forged on Hillel’s Birthright trips continue to strengthen the tight-knit KU Jewish community. KU Hillel staff look forward to bringing many more students to Israel and other overseas leadership trips supported by the generosity of the Kansas City Jewish community.
“Birthright was absolutely fantastic and has helped me connect to my Jewish identity,” Jake Niefeld, a senior, said. “Traveling in a country that I’ve heard so much about but have never been with so many of my best friends was an experience I will never forget.”