Israeli Chronicles — Connecting Israel & Cincinnati
Finding Home in the People of Cincinnati—Hadas Silver
By Hadas Silver, Friend from Israel/Chavera M’Israel, Jewish Federation of Cincinnati
Each September the Jewish Federation of Cincinnati welcomes two new Friends from Israel/Chaverim M’Israel. This year we welcomed Alon Peretz and Hadas Silver, who will stay through summer 2017. This is the 13th year of the program, which brings two post-high-school teenagers from our partner city, Netanya, to Cincinnati to share their stories, and teach people across the Cincinnati area about Israeli life. The chaverim program is a program of Partnership2Gether (P2G) of the Jewish Federation of Cincinnati.
My assignment this month was to summarize my year in Cincinnati, but honestly, no list of activities or explanations can begin to describe the amazing year I have had. Over the last year, I have met the most incredible, inspirational people; I have been to places I never dreamed I would go; and I found a great strength inside me I didn’t know existed. I will never be able to summarize the year properly. The individual moments put me on a roller coaster of emotions, so I’ll focus on the people who have made a great impact on me.
Every single person I have met in Cincinnati has taught me something—from my kindergarten class to the people I met by accident. Some lessons were bigger than others, but all of them were valuable.
At the beginning of the year, I felt like a sponge. I soaked up everything around me, slowly taking it all in. I was observing everything and looking for a place to call my own, meanwhile trying to figure out exactly what my role here would be. Over time, however, I was able to do more than just soak things up, and actually bring myself and who I am to Cincinnati.
Believe it or not, I have found a stronger connection to my Judaism while in Cincinnati. Before I came, my connection to Judaism was purely emotional. I always loved lighting candles on Shabbat and doing Kiddush on Friday nights, but while in Cincinnati, I have learned just how much I love Judaism. Honestly, I have been to more synagogues in the Unites States in the last year than my whole life in Israel! What I have realized, though, is that it’s OK for my connection to Judaism to be purely emotional. I have accepted that part of me and now embrace and love it.
I have also realized how much I truly love Israel. I love Israel with my eyes open. I know all of its beauty and also its difficulties. I have always lived Israel, but now I choose to love it every single day and work to make it better.
Also, I have learned the real meaning of Jewish peoplehood and the fate we share. Living as a minority is something I have never known but was so important for me to understand.
Throughout the year I have missed Israel a lot. Missing home came in waves, big flooding waves, much stronger and more forceful than I could ever have imagined. It was hard, but each time these waves washed me over, I got better at swimming.
At some point towards the middle of the year, I actually started missing Cincinnati. Even though I was still here, I knew I should cherish and enjoy every single moment I could because soon it would be over.
In the last few months I have realized that no matter where I find myself in the world, I will always miss someone or somewhere, and even though that hurts so much, maybe that’s something I need to learn to live with. More than that, though, I should try my best to be grateful, every single day, for the love I have received from this community and the love I was able to give. Saying goodbye is still so hard.
Maybe a home doesn’t have be to one place. Maybe it’s not a place at all but instead a sense of security, a sense of belonging. Maybe it’s the feeling of being loved. A home can be anything—a hand on my shoulder, helping me through the day; or a hug from a reluctant student. In those moments, I am definitely home. I am so grateful for the home I have within the people I love so much here in Cincinnati. Just like missing Israel this past year, I’m sure missing Cincinnati will come in big, flooding waves, also much stronger and more forceful than I can imagine right now. It will be hard, but I’m sure with each new wave, I will get better at swimming.
Cincinnati will always be my home, and no matter where I find myself in life, I will always miss it. The people I have met—my friends and family—will always continue to be a part of who I am. It’s hard to find the words to express my gratitude to the Jewish community of Cincinnati, but I think a good start would be to say thank you and to promise to take all that I have learned back with me to Israel.
The chaverim are hosted in homes by community members. The experience of hosting is as enriching for the families as it is for the chaverim. Israel is now a part of each family. And each family shares a son/daughter in Israel. If you want to learn more about hosting an Israeli teen in your home—for shorter experiences or as a chaverim host – please contact Sharon Spiegel at sspiegel@jfedcin.org.
Thank you to this year’s host families: Lisa and Josh Zelvy, Yana and David Duke, Karen and John Brownlee, and Dr. Abbie and John Youkilis.
To bring the chaverim and their story to you, please contact Sharon Spiegel, Program Director, at sspiegel@jfedcin.org.
