The Trip I Waited Nearly Three Decades to Take

Editors Note:  On July 27, 2024, a Hezbollah rocket struck a soccer field in Majdal Shams, a Druze town in the Golan Heights, killing twelve children and wounding dozens more. In the two years since, Birthright Israel’s Volunteer in Israel program has partnered with the community to build gardens at local schools, an effort aimed at bringing renewal to spaces marked by loss. The reflections that follow come from volunteers who took part in that work. 

I grew up in a conservative home on the Jersey Shore. I went to Hebrew school and celebrated the High Holidays. Watching my mother stay active in the Jewish community taught me how important it is to stay connected to your roots. I first heard about Birthright Israel from a hometown friend who was planning to go, and I knew right away that I wanted to go too. But my mother was afraid for my safety and didn’t want me to go. That longing never went away. It simply slipped to the back of my mind. 

Fast-forward to October 2023. My social media feed had become a place to advocate for Israel and the hostages, and I wanted to do something more. But how could I help? 

In February 2025, a friend invited me to see Matisyahu perform at a small venue in Teaneck. She told me about Birthright’s volunteer program for adults. At 47, I wasn’t sure I’d get another chance to visit Israel. Once I learned there was an opportunity to go and help, I signed up the very next day. I didn’t realize how much the experience would affect me until I arrived. 

My father was against my going. He worried about my safety, just as my mother had all those years earlier. I reminded him that there would always be a war somewhere, and Birthright Israel wouldn’t send us if they didn’t believe it was safe. As it turned out, I have never felt safer anywhere than I did in Israel.

Once we landed safely and I reassured my father that I was okay, we hit the ground running. On our first day, we volunteered at a secondhand store in Lod, sorting donations. The next day, we pruned pomegranate trees in a village in the Golan Heights. The farmers explained that this was their land, and growing pomegranates was how they made a living. Some villages had lost workers because of the ongoing war, leaving no one to help with the work. They were incredibly grateful that we had come.

Majdal Shams was the most impactful day of the trip. We visited Al-Manahil School, where six of the 12 children killed in the 2024 Hezbollah rocket attach had been students. Near the field stood a small structure, built by the community as a memorial to all 12 children. We spent the day planting a garden in their memory. At recess, the children came outside and played with us. You could see how happy they were to have us there.

The attack affected more than the six students who were killed. It affected their families, friends, and teachers, too. The school put its year on hold afterward to make sure everyone was okay. Seeing the children outside, living and moving forward as best they could, was deeply meaningful.

I keep coming back to the gratitude I felt in Israel. The principal, teachers, and every organization we worked with were grateful—not only for the work we did, but simply because we chose to be there. I went to help them, and I left feeling I had received far more than I gave.

I work at a bank in Lakewood, a large Orthodox community in Ocean County. All my customers knew I was going, and they were so excited for me. I posted pictures every day because I wanted people to see what Israel really looks like. Friends—including friends who aren’t Jewish—told me afterward that they had no idea. They had seen the news and social media, but that wasn’t the whole picture. People hear “Israel” and think “war,” but that couldn’t be further from the truth. 

To the donor who made my trip possible: thank you. You helped me give back to communities in Israel, and in doing so, you helped them, too. The trip wasn’t just about seeing Israel; it was about experiencing it. It changed how I show up as a proud Jewish woman and strengthened my desire to keep sharing the good I saw there. 

The experience made me want to do more and give back more. I want this feeling to continue for the next generation. And if you’re young and have the time, don’t wait as long as I did.