This Week At The Center

Lag Ba’Omer for Lone Soldiers

Last Thursday evening, in honor of Lag Ba’Omer, about 50 of our lone soldiersgathered on the beaches of Haifa for a bonfire and BBQ. Soldiers originallyfrom all over the world came together for hamburgers, wings and beers whilethey enjoyed each other’s company. It was an evening filled with laughter,bonding and sharing stories as the soldiers made new friends and became closerwith friends they already had. It was a gathering of warm hearts and by the endof the evening many full stomachs!

With great food, beautiful weather, andfriendly company, what could be better!

Yom Hazikaron in Tel-Aviv

On Tuesday night, the evening of Yom Hazikaron, between 100 and 150 of Masa’s youth both on gap years and semester programs gathered for a rare opportunity to commemorate Israel’s fallen soldiers with a program in English. It took place at Maze Nine, a community center in Tel-Aviv. It was a very successful program, helping Olim and Americans see, experience and learn what it is like during Memorial Day in Israel. A very moving speech by the mother of Alex Singer was given, along with many questions that the students had for her. After that, a clip of Michael Levin’s story was told along with a few beautiful words said about him. Then we proceeded to tell the story of several fallen soldiers and the students were all very moved. Although a sad beginning to a very sad day- it is important for these students to see and feel what it is like in Israel on this day, and of course the following day ended in celebrations for Yom Ha’atzmaut!

Yom Hazikaron Ceremony in Latrun

The evening of Yom Hazikaron a very moving ceremony took place at an army base in Latrun. The siren, followed by soldiers marching across the stage while a candle was lit, ushered the night in. Then clips of fallen soldiers in that particular unit were shown as well as the story of Michael Levin and Alex Singer, two fallen lone soldiers. The majority of the audience was made up of thousands of MASA participants, and was done mainly in English. We were pleased that so many family members of fallen soldiers were there to remember with us, and we were honored to hear them speak about their children and siblings.
Although it was a very sad evening, it was a success and we were so pleased to see the reactions of sadness and hope from the MASA participants as they too, felt as if it were their family members who have fallen.

Yom Ha’atzmaut in Tel-Aviv!

Last Thursday the entire country of Israel celebrated Israel’s 64th birthday! Our lone soldiers were no different; we had a lively, exciting and lots of people at Arlozorov park in Tel-Aviv. About 120 of our soldiers enjoyed, hamburgers, hot dogs, salads, beer and cake as they enjoyed relaxing and spending time with their friends. Some of our soldiers enjoyed playing guitar while others sang along.
We were so excited to see so many new faces in such a great atmosphere! Towards the end of the festivities, the soldiers were invited to Shabbat dinner the following night and also were given gift baskets from many different youth filled with snacks and goodies!
We owe a big thank you to all of the center’s volunteers for all their help for the event! And we are excited for lag ba’omer celebrations on May 10th, and as always pictures and upcoming events are always posted both on our website, and on the facebook page!