Update from Amy Ben-Dov Shalom Parents and Shnattim, Another week on Shnat has passed and I can safely say that the group is now well into their experience and the opening phase of the program is coming to an end. While the Kibbutz group experience winds down, most of our Shnattim are thinking about the next section of the year: Options! During the next few months, each person has chosen whether to stay on Kibbutz to fully integrate into the Reform Zionist Community at Kibbutz Lotan, or whether to go north and live in Karmiel and immerse themselves into that [...]

From Amy Ben-Dov: Dear Shnattim and Parents, I just returned home from visiting the Shnattim at Kibbutz Lotan over the last two days. From the moment I arrived, I was immediately drawn into the positive atmosphere of the group. I joined a session on composting and Judaism and in spite of a massive giggle attack by some of the girls, was able to hear about some of the connections that the group has made while learning about ecology and permaculture in their unique neighborhood in the kibbutz. After that session I had one-on-one meetings with the North Americans and got [...]

By Ben and Benjy This has been our first real, proper week on Shnat and I think we talk on behalf of everyone in the group when we say it has been fantastic. The last few days of Orientation, based in Beit Shmuel – the headquarters of Progressive Judaism worldwide – far surpassed our expectations of a week of ‘get-to-know you games’ and ‘rules and reg’ sessions that last year’s Shnatties had led us to believe would be the case. On Thursday we were taken on a 4-hour tour of the Old City by Amy Ben-Dov – a NFTY movement [...]