HABONIM DROR
Israel Programs
Testimonials
Read what other has to say about their experience on Workshop!
Celia R.
"We had a very special holiday here. We were able to light candles every night with Hannukiot people had brought or been sent, and there was even a Kibbutz wide tekkes (ceremony) that we were able to partake in. Everyone also had their fair share of sufganiot (jelly doughnuts) during the eight days as well! It’s so different and special celebrating Jewish holidays here in Israel where the entire nation is in solidarity."
MATAN R.
A bunch of [us] went to Kibbutz Gezer which is near the centre of Israel, near Modi’in and Ramie. It was really interesting to see another kibbutz and the similarities as well as the differences. They run a reconstructionist synagogue with a female rabbi. For dinner, we each went in pairs to different host families that took us in. We all enjoyed ourselves a lot and had really good conversations with the kibbutzniks. There is a large population of Habonim Dror alumni that made aliyah that are staying on the kibbutz so a lot of the members and children speak fluent english. After dinner all met back up in the moadon and hung out with the teens of the kibbutz who were around 15 and 16 age. Many of us just hung out and talked to them about the kibbutz and their life here.
We woke up the next morning at 6 to pick olives, the main reason we visited the kibbutz. It was a big learning experience for all of us for a lot of different reasons. We talked a lot with Donny, the guy in charge of the olive pickings, who went on Workshop 25 (we’re currently on Workshop 63) as well as a lot of different members of the kibbutz who came with us. We finished picking olives around 1 and a family that had went to Machaneh Galil back in the day hosted us all for lunch. The selection again was ridiculous. So much food, so much dessert, and so much amazing hospitality.
In summary, it was so much fun. All the food was so amazing and a lot of us are going to try and get Habonim Dror to talk to Kibbutz Gezer and ask if Workshops after us can stay there because of the great experience we had.
NAOMI T.
Workshop 63 just returned from a week in Poland! This is actually a journey, not a trip. It was foggy most if not all of the days were in in Poland. It really set the eerie, depressing mood for the things we were doing and experiencing.
Paulina, [one of] the speakers, is an old Polish woman who spoke no English (we had a translater though) and wore traditional Polish garb. She told us about her family in the wake of the Holocaust, and how they risked their lives to help many Jews. Her family was Catholic, but they still helped feed hungry children who came to their doorstep, and assisted in driving Jewish families to bunkers for hiding. It was amazing to hear her story and learn about some of the valiant efforts that her and her family made in order to save the lives of some of the Jews in Krakow.
We went to Plaschow concentration camp when we were in Krakow. It's literally in Krakow, the second biggest city in Poland. It's hard to believe that a concentration camp can be right in a city. What's awful is that there are houses that sit right across the street from the camps. It's crazy that these people are so desensitized that they can live so close to such a horrible place.
The last day we learned about the youth movement resistance fighters like Mordechei Anielwicz, Chavka, Zivia Lubetkin, etc and their efforts in the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. We walked the path of heroes and listened and learned about their stories.