We started the day off early. Originally we had planned some community service at the Jaffa Institute, but due to complications, we were unable to volunteer at this place. While some male members were able to clean up an unfortunate spill, the other groups learned about what the Jaffa Institute tries to instill in Jaffa’s poorer communities. The program directors told us about their afterschool programs and food services, along with protections and aid to those who need it. Even though we did not volunteer there as a group, it was nice to see what the members of Jaffa’s society due to try to help their impoverished citizens and those who need help in their community.
After we left the institute, we got back on the bus and went to a park in the center of Jaffa and had a very intriguing discussion about what we had just experienced. We compared Israeli poverty with American poverty and how each problem is dealt with. We also had a very interesting discussion about the sexism pervading in this organization and within Judaism.
This was especially interesting after our orthodox-style Shabbat a couple days prior. It was also an experience to hear the Israeli views as opposed to the American views. After this, our quick-witted tour guide, Lior, gave us a scavenger hunt for Jaffa. Six teams took an hour to explore Jaffa while looking for certain checkpoints along the way. Some people even were brave enough to try their hands at selling at a flea market. We then returned to the park for lunch.
After lunch we got back on the bus with the Israelis and took a drive out to Kennes; the North American Seminar that consists of six North American cohorts from all across the continent (one group is from Montreal). We began with an introductory orientation during which each cohort was able to perform a short skit and many members of the Diller organization spoke about the coming week. Everyone is very excited. We were then split up into color groups. Each group consists of 12 people, 2 fellows from each cohort.
After dinner, we met with our color groups for the first time for a couple hours. As soon as icebreakers finished, we launched into a very interesting discussion about individual identity. We became more comfortable with many different Dillers. We also realized how close our cohort has become over the past week and we’re all very excited to see our connections grow.
We really enjoyed leading the group today and we hope that we hope that we can use this experience later on in life.
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