Introduction

Dear travelers on the Jewish Experience in Israel & Poland:

We are about to embark on one of those “life altering trips,” to aptly place a cliché. We will travel together on a journey through modern Jewish history. Poland to Israel. Destruction to rebirth. Darkness to light.

Together, we will experience two of the most significant events in Jewish history. You will be transported back in time to one of the darkest chapters in human existence, to one of the most terrifying times in Jewish history—the destruction of European Jewry in The Shoah, the Holocaust. Then, before you can take a deep breath, you will travel to Israel, our Jewish homeland, to celebrate the vibrancy of the modern State of Israel. By experiencing the key places where these events took place, you will better understand the world that was destroyed and the existence of our modern Jewish homeland.

Our goal is for you to learn the lessons of the Holocaust and to lead the Jewish people into a future vowing Never Again.

The mission is to create memories, leading to a revitalized commitment to Judaism, Israel and the Jewish people. You will acquire the skills to educate your peers about the Holocaust and to fight those who would deny its history, while forging a dynamic link with Israel.

Our trip is unique. Through the Partnership 2000 program, you will develop person-to-person connections with Jews from Cincinnati’s partnership city, Netanya, Israel. In addition to traveling with a diverse group of peers from Cincinnati, you will discover the similarities and differences in the respective experiences of growing up in the United States and in Israel. Together, you will better understand what it means to be Jewish and return home with a new sense of yourself, your people and your history.

Poland and Israel; one, the richness and anguish of our past; the other, the hope of our future. Through our travels, you will better understand how important both aspects are to your identity as a Jewish teenager living in the 21st century.

It will be a month of unforgettable experiences. Grasp the future. Embrace the past. Together we will share moments of sadness and joy and create long-lasting bonds.

Sincerely,
Your chaperones,



Brian Meeron & Sarah Warren

Jewish Experience in Israel & Poland
June 29, 2008 – July 27, 2008