Birthright Israel Foundation Blog

Levi Snow and Megan McKee do not have the traditional Birthright Israel love story. Before their trip in 2014, the two had already been dating and met through the Indiana University Hillel. Their journey helped solidify their love for her each other. They both signed up for Birthright Israel at the beginning of their relationship, not knowing what the future… Read More 

The Birthright Israel love story of Melissa and Alex Block was beshert from the beginning. Their story unknowingly began when Melissa volunteered to lead an LA-based trip in 2008, and Alex's plans of going on Birthright Israel with his cousin fell through. For Melissa, she was not initially leading the trip Alex was on. At the time, only a limited… Read More 

Warning, the below Birthright Israel love story of Amanda and Nate will bring tears of joy to your eyes and will put a massive smile on your face. They, like so many other young Jews, never imagined they'd find their soulmate on Birthright Israel. Amanda and Nathan, unknowingly at the time, signed up for a New York City community Birthright… Read More 

For over two decades, young Jewish adults have built a stronger connection to the Jewish people and the State of Israel thanks to the Birthright Israel trip. Many participants attend with hopes of meeting new friends and learning more about themselves... And, sometimes, to their surprise, they find their bashert. In Hebrew, bashert means destiny and is often used to… Read More 

Rachelle and Max both attended the University of Maryland, College Park where they unknowingly both signed up for the same Birthright Israel trip in January of 2015. It was on their trip, they connected and the sparks started to fly! Once Birthright Israel was over, they graduated from college and moved to Johnson City, TN so Rachelle could attend a… Read More 

Birthright Israel was, by far, one of the most incredible experiences we have ever had as individuals and, of course, as a couple. What you see and learn is unimaginable and priceless. For us, it was truly life-changing. We both always wanted to go to Israel, and, at the time, the age cut-off for our trip was 27-years-old. Mark had just turned 27,… Read More 

Halley and Joe Lipsky's love story began at JFK Airport on January 1, 2014, waiting to board a flight to Israel. As the entire Birthright Israel group made their way through El Al security, Halley and Joe were held back for a minute. This was when they started chatting and never stopped getting to know each other for the remainder… Read More 

In June 2019, when Mike and Lindsay departed for Israel, they hoped to meet new friends. They each had chosen a Miami-based Birthright Israel trip, hoping to connect with young Jews in their community. However, they each got much more than friendship. Read our interview to learn more about their Birthright Israel love story! Q&A with Mike and Lindsay  What… Read More 

Melissa and Dor Flayshman met on January 9, 2009, a few days into their Birthright Israel trip. Dor was one of the Mifgash (Israeli soldiers) and Melissa remembers he spoke fluent English and was very funny. She specifically remembers being instantly drawn to him and by that first evening, the pair was inseparable. It was hard saying goodbye once their… Read More 

For nearly all 20-plus years of Birthright Israel, Palm Beach area philanthropists and alumni have played a significant role in the organization. Nestled in Florida's Gold Coast, Palm Beach is home to one of America's largest Jewish communities making it an ideal place for nonprofits, such as Birthright Israel to thrive. Since the program's founding, over 4,000 young Jews from our Palm… Read More 

We both fell in love with Israel from our first trips, me at 15 and Matthew at 20. As we got older, we wanted to share that love with others and both began staffing travel programs to Israel, including Birthright Israel trips and we are both Birthright Israel Fellows (from different cohorts). In December of 2016, we were both staffing… Read More