By Lahav and Danielle, Ann Arbor ShinShinim
Danielle and Lahav arrived in Ann Arbor in August 2024 as volunteers on a year of service from Israel before their army service, through the ShinShinim program of the international Jewish Agency for Israel.
The past month has been a whirlwind of activities, celebrations, and new experiences for us here in Ann Arbor. We’re excited to share our journey and the ways we’ve been connecting with the community.
Israeli Snacks Activity at HDS and TBE
One of the highlights this month was our Israeli snacks activity at Hebrew Day School (HDS) and Temple Beth Emeth (TBE). The children explored popular Israeli snacks, made homemade “Bisli,” and took a virtual tour of the iconic “Bamba” factory. In small groups, the kids even came up with their own unique snack concepts in different categories – it was inspiring to see their creativity!
Holiday Greetings to Family in Israel
With the many Jewish holidays celebrated in October, Lahav and Danielle decided to send special greeting cards to their families back in Israel. They included personal messages and warm wishes to let them know how much they miss and appreciate them, especially as we celebrate these holidays so far from home.
Also for Halloween Lahav sent to his sister in a trick or treat envelope – plastic spiders, chocolate, pumpkin spice scent, red leaf and stickers.
Experiencing Halloween for the First Time
This October marked our first-ever Halloween celebration! After 18 years of hearing about Halloween, we finally got to experience it in full. We dressed up as characters from “Men in Black,” carved pumpkins, and joined a Halloween-themed event hosted by BBYO, complete with a Halloween movie screening and spooky cupcake decorating. On Halloween night, Danielle went trick-or-treating with her host family, Sarah and Rabbi Josh Whinston and their children, down Granger Avenue, marveling at the impressive decorations that lined the entire street.
Launching Israeli Storytime at Public Libraries
In November, we began hosting “Israeli Storytime” sessions at local public libraries, inviting community children to join us for an engaging Israeli experience that includes Hebrew words and interactive elements. We host one session in Hebrew and another in English. We’ll continue this project monthly, visiting a new branch of the Ann Arbor District Library each time, with a different story to share.
A little time for fun
In our free time, we’ve also had memorable moments with ShinShinim who are based in other communities. Locally, we attended a birthday celebration of one of the ShinShinim in Detroit, which included axe-throwing. We also went to the Michigan State football game at the Big House with the Detroit ShinShinim.
During the ‘Simchat Torah’ break, Danielle traveled to Chicago, where she reconnected with ShinShinim from Louisville, Cincinnati, and Chicago. The trip was packed with fun: from biking along Lake Michigan to enjoying deep-dish pizza and exploring local attractions like Millennium Park and Michigan Avenue’s “Magnificent Mile.”
Meanwhile, Lahav has been busy, too! He completed a bridge project near the home of his host family, Scott and Cindy Kellman. He’s also been on many challenging bike rides, joking, “If there’s no risk of injury, it’s not a good route!
In October, both of us signed up to run the Ann Arbor 5K Marathon (organized by Jewish community member Eva Solomon). While we didn’t run the whole course, it was a wonderful experience running through downtown Ann Arbor, surrounded by the supportive energy of other runners on a rainy but lively day in this amazing sport event.
Jewish Agency Seminar in Washington, D.C.
In early November, we attended a meaningful seminar by the Jewish Agency in Washington, D.C., which included the General Assembly (GA) conference of the Jewish Federations of North America. This gathering brought together ShinShinim from all of the communities across North America, giving us the chance to connect, share experiences, and discuss ideas for community engagement. It was inspiring to meet others on similar paths and to gain insights for our own work here in Ann Arbor.
Leading part of the “Rosh Chodesh” at HDS
Also at the start of November, we participated in a Hebrew Day School event to celebrate Rosh Chodesh Cheshvan, the beginning of the Hebrew month of Cheshvan, which falls between the High Holidays and Chanukah. We put on a short performance to introduce ourselves to the students and their parents. Our skit, which we wrote ourselves, was an introduction to the ShinShin program, with the characters “Shin from Shana” (Year) and “Shin from Sherut” (Service) joining forces, just like us – bringing Israel to the community through a year of dedicated service.
Witnessing the Excitement of U.S. Elections
Being in the U.S. during election season has been an eye-opening experience! It’s fascinating to observe how different the political process is here compared to Israel. To share this unique perspective, we took the opportunity to teach our 7th-grade group at Temple Beth Emeth about Israel’s elections and political system. To make it fun and engaging, we created mock political parties – Sandals, Flip-Flops, and Crocs. The students presented their party platforms, advocating for what mattered most to them, and were tasked with “assembling a government.” They then had to negotiate and form a coalition, much like the Israeli Knesset, which turned out to be a lively and enjoyable exercise for everyone involved.
It was a fantastic way to introduce them to the dynamics of Israel’s political system while sparking interesting discussions about the differences and similarities between Israel and the U.S.
Hebrew Classes at TBE
The 5th-grade Hebrew class at TBE has been making impressive progress with Lahav on their journey to learn Hebrew! The lessons are engaging and fun, and the students have already mastered five new letters, learned to read words containing them, recognized some key vocabulary, and even played a challenging, fast-paced Israeli game called “Itzik Lost His Chain,” using Hebrew numbers and words.
New Israeli Studies Program
In November, we also launched a new Israeli Studies program at HDS. Every week, we dedicate 30 minutes to a different Israel-related topic in each class. This month, we focused on the significance of November 29th (Kaf Tet beNovember – the day in 1947 on which the United Nations approved the partition resolution for Palestine. This resolution laid the groundwork for Israel’s independence the following year). After several sessions with each class, we organized a school-wide assembly to discuss this day’s importance. We look forward to seeing the positive impact of this new initiative!
Gratitude and Appreciation
We are incredibly grateful to our supervisor Amichay Findling, HDS teacher and Israel Programs Manager at the Jewish Federation. Amichay has supported us every step of the way, helping bring our project ideas to life within the community. Also, we’re grateful for our site-supervisors in the different institutions – Susan Horowitz (Director of Education at TBE), Rabbi Will Keller (HDS Head of School), and Peretz Hirshbein (Director of Child and Family Services at the JCC). Our appreciation also goes out to the entire Federation team, who we see regularly at the office and who always offer a helping hand and fresh ideas. We especially want to thank our host families, who have been there for us throughout this journey. Their warmth, flexibility with our varying schedules, and encouragement have provided a sense of comfort and home.
Lastly, our heartfelt thanks to the Mandel-Warner and Eliav families, who graciously hosted us while our host families were away. Their kindness made us feel truly welcomed and cared for. We can’t wait to see what 2025 will bring!