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Birthright Israel Foundation Blog

From a Queens Housing Project to Jewish Leadership with Birthright Israel 
Alums Leadership & Supporters Trip Highlights

June 23, 2026

From a Queens Housing Project to Jewish Leadership with Birthright Israel 

by Michelle Rojas-Tal , 2004 Birthright Israel Alumna
It was January of 2004, and I was nineteen years old, rolling my luggage out of Ben Gurion Airport for the first time. Something tumbled off the top. A young...
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Birthright Israel Is the Greatest Gift of All
Alums Trip Highlights

June 11, 2026

Birthright Israel Is the Greatest Gift of All

by Michael Benzadon , 2026 Birthright Israel Alumnus and Onward Participant
I'm from Miami, and a biochemistry pre-med student at the University of Florida. My dream is to become a cardiovascular surgeon. My parents are Orthodox and Sephardic, so I grew...
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Birthright Israel Showed I Have Another Home
Alums Trip Highlights

June 11, 2026

Birthright Israel Showed I Have Another Home

by Drew Tovin , 2024 Birthright Israel Alumnus, 2026 Birthright Israel Onward Participant

I'm from Atlanta, Georgia, and a junior at the University of Florida. I attended Jewish day school through eighth grade, where we learned in both Hebrew and English. That's where I got my first real sense of Jewish identity. But at a public high school, that faded into the background.In college, I joined a Jewish fraternity. My new friends were...

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Birthright Israel Showed Me How Much Jews Need Each Other
Alums Trip Highlights

June 11, 2026

Birthright Israel Showed Me How Much Jews Need Each Other

by Jason Eichner , 2026 Birthright Israel Alumnus

Hello! First and foremost, I would like to thank the Birthright Israel Foundation donors for providing me the opportunity to travel to Israel. It was the experience of a lifetime, shared with Jewish people from around the world, and one that I will be forever grateful for.My name is Jason Eichner and I am a 26-year-old from Cincinnati, Ohio. I...

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Still Reaching Out Months After Birthright Israel
Trip Highlights Alums

June 11, 2026

Still Reaching Out Months After Birthright Israel

by Brynna Mitchner , 2025 Birthright Israel Alumna

I think my words from our closing session, where our group looked back on our Birthright trip and said some emotional goodbyes, might be the best place to start in reflecting on the experience:“I had the opportunity to come to Israel once before [with my Jewish Day School class], and when we had to leave, I was very sad, as...

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Volunteer in Israel: A New Beginning For Me and My Judaism
Alums Trip Highlights

May 5, 2026

Volunteer in Israel: A New Beginning For Me and My Judaism

by Alivia Barker , 2026 Volunteer in Israel Alumna

My name is Alivia Barker, and I’m a 36-year-old woman living in Boca Raton, Florida. Today, I focus my energy on spreading joy and love while building meaningful connections; whether through my work as a personal organizer, my volunteer role as a Big Sister through Jewish Family Services, or my treasured relationships with friends and family. I feel incredibly fortunate...

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From Four Jews in Texas to Thirty on a Birthright Israel Bus
Alums Trip Highlights

April 20, 2026

From Four Jews in Texas to Thirty on a Birthright Israel Bus

by Mallory Friedman , 2026 Birthright Israel Alumna

I am a third-year Health Sciences major from Solon, Ohio, and the Vice President of Administrative Affairs on Ohio State Hillel’s student executive board. I grew up in your average American Jewish household, which is to say that, for as long as I could remember, my parents, grandparents, aunts, and uncles all told me I needed to go on Birthright...

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Birthright Israel: The Feeling You Can't Get Anywhere Else
Alums Trip Highlights

April 15, 2026

Birthright Israel: The Feeling You Can't Get Anywhere Else

by Gabrielle Tirsun , 2021 Birthright Israel Alumna and Madricha

I grew up in Plainview, Long Island, in a Conservative household. My grandfather was a Holocaust survivor, so Jewish identity was very important in my family. We were all raised very Zionist. Israel was always this mystical place in my head. My mom had been there; my dad hadn't. I was dying to go because I'd heard so much about it....

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Lessons in Caring From a 13-Trip Birthright Israel Madricha
Alums Leadership & Supporters Trip Highlights

April 14, 2026

Lessons in Caring From a 13-Trip Birthright Israel Madricha

by Sadie Hilf , Birthright Israel Madricha

I was born and raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. I am a former pre-professional ballet dancer with an intense love for reading and writing, a soft spot for crafts, and a burning passion to see and change the world. My Jewish identity was rooted in questioning, learning, and a strong but impersonal connection to Israel. I grew up being told Torah stories...

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Why I Keep Coming Back as a Birthright Israel Madricha
Alums Trip Highlights Leadership & Supporters

April 13, 2026

Why I Keep Coming Back as a Birthright Israel Madricha

by Haddie Daner , 2022 Birthright Israel Alumna

My twin sister, my brother and I were adopted from China and grew up in San Luis Obispo, California, near the ocean. My whole extended family is Ashkenazi Jewish, with a mix of Reform and Conservative. We kept kosher strictly in my home and observed Shabbat, and I had my bat mitzvah and went to Jewish summer camp.  I started college...

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