From Seatmates to Soulmates

It was May 28, 2013, at Newark airport, and we were about to board our Birthright Israel flight. One of us, from West Palm Beach, had a spilled coffee, an open bag and hadn't slept in days. The other, from Denver, had a file folder with every document printed, a list of basic translations and no plans to meet a Jewish boy. It was all about the food, the culture and the adventure. 

Let's rewind a bit. The story really began two weeks earlier, when the best friend of this Jewish boy (let's call him Braden) dropped out of the trip. That opened a spot for me, and I got the call that I was off the waitlist and could come. I was reluctant. I'm type A and needed time to "plan," but everyone told me to go. And boy am I happy I did! 

Braden and I first met at the gate. We exchanged a simple hello and boarded the flight, only to find ourselves seated directly next to one another. Braden offered me the window seat, and the rest was history. 

When we got to Israel, we were split into groups and partnered by last name. His starts with L (List) and mine with K (Kay). Who knew that partnership would last forever?  

On day two of the trip, I called my dad and told him I was going to marry a guy I met on Birthright. "A Jewish boy? What's gotten into you?" I told him not to worry. This boy and I had connected over our love of Colorado, schnitzel and dessert. I'm sure that really soothed his worries. 

There is something special about how Israel brings out your true identity, your soul, so to speak. It was my most genuine self that fell in love, quickly, with this man and a country simultaneously. We extended our trip by a week before beginning a long-distance relationship. We met friends from all over the world and vowed to keep in touch with them all. 

Denver and West Palm Beach are 1,999 miles apart, house to house. Although I had promised I'd never leave Colorado, I did. After almost a year of long distance, I moved to Florida while Braden completed his master's program, and we began our life together. 

We lived in Florida, but I always hoped to move back to Colorado. Braden spent winters in Vail, the same sleepy mountain town where I grew up spending every weekend. We hoped that one day we could live there together and raise a family. 

We got engaged in 2014 and married in 2016 in Vail, that magical place. After doing some digging, we learned we had likely spent days in the same ski school (although I would have smoked him)! 

We moved back to Colorado and started our married life in Denver. We worked hard and started a family. We have two daughters, Kaia (8) and Willa (5). Vail became our happiest place, and we spent as many weekends there as possible. Our kids would cry on the way home. It's the town that started our entire conversation on that plane, and in 2024, we moved there full time. An opportunity fell into our lap, and just as I had when I said yes to Birthright, we jumped at the chance. 

Judaism was always part of our lives. Braden's parents helped run their temple, and my mom was the education director of mine. We went to Hebrew school and had Bar and Bat Mitzvahs. We reluctantly showed up on the High Holidays, but neither of us felt a true connection. Meeting in Israel made us more aware that our relationship was built on shared values and traditions, but Judaism still wasn't a priority until we became part of the Vail Chabad community. 

With our girls' encouragement, you will find us at every Chabad event, Shabbat and community service opportunity. We bake challah, teach about the holidays at the kids' school and light the candles on Friday. It's become our home and our pillar, and without Birthright Israel, none of this would be possible. The people we met on that trip have flown here from around the world to visit us, and we keep hoping to see them again in our favorite place. 

We keep saying "next year in Israel." Our kids have traveled all over the world, but I want Israel to be one of the first places they remember in full. I want them to experience it deeply and to have memories that last a lifetime, knowing their parents' journey began there. 

Birthright Israel isn't just an organization that connects people to their Jewish identity. It's a program that fuels relationships that last forever: with people, with our homeland and, for us, with a soulmate. It changed the trajectory of my life in a matter of 10 days and gave me the keys to build a Jewish home as a spouse and mother. Today and every day, I'm forever grateful.