From Connections Magazine

People to People - Gesher LeKesher

As one of its primary objectives, Partnership 2000 (P2K) intends to leverage and enhance the already interconnected Jewish world. The People to People (Gesher LeKesher) programs prove again and again just how special, moving and meaningful such a mission can be. The "Living Bridge" between the communities adds young and old, individuals and families every year to its ranks, both locally and abroad.

Every year, adult and youth programs bring together local residents and those from the partner communities for a fascinating journey of encounters and mutual growth. These entail exploring educational and value-oriented subjects, such as Judaism and Zionism, through joint discussions and exposure to the life and workings of each of the communities. It is amazing to discover just how quickly links are made between the participants, merging into a unified group to deal with both common and distinctive challenges. "Direct contact" is the common denominator that constitutes the basis of all Gesher L’Kesher programs.

One program, for example, called the Professional Exchange Program has already made new connections by bringing together teachers, artists, pre-school and informal education personnel as well as professionals from other fields. These participants share knowledge and experience in addition to developing personal friendships. These encounters are the first step to future cooperation and shared initiatives. In addition, being hosted in family homes, as well as being exposed to the unique ethnic fabric of the area, turns the visit into an unforgettable experience.

Local Community Leadership Program

The Local Community Leadership Program was born when the need was identified for more involved leadership from within the community. This need was found to be shared by all four communities. The underlying thinking was that by promoting local leadership in each of the communities, while at the same time creating ties between the activists from the partner communities, the participants would be able to grow professionally by learning together, and just as importantly, a strengthen of the ties between the communities.

The Israeli team numbered 19 members and there were ten each from South Africa and Washington. All members are involved and interested in being active and working as leaders.

The Israeli participants attended a local training seminar and led a brainstorming session about the future of the area, the goals they would like to attain and how they would go about achieving them.

By the end of the seminar, the participants were highly motivated and determined and formulated their vision and goals. They include:

    * Improving the image of the area, while taking advantage of its human resources and environmental potential

    * Advancing understanding and mutual respect among the different groups that will promote a proper social environment

    * Improving the quality of life as a result of investment in education, culture, social and economic issues.

Concomitant with the local seminar, similarly structured courses were held in the South African and Washington communities, at the end of which its graduates visited our area and met with the Israeli course graduates. Together they learned about how each of the different communities operated and the methods each used to deal with their own unique issues, enhancing the connection and cooperation between them. At the end of the visit, the Israeli and South African course graduates traveled to meet their peers in the Jewish community of Washington D.C., where a young leadership program is already running. The visit in Washington included getting to know the Jewish community, its institutions, leaders and methods of operation. An exciting meeting took place with representatives of the different groups within the community and with a member of AIPAC, the pro-Israeli American lobby.

Ilan Geal-Dor, one of the participants summarized the visit: "Beyond the experience of shared learning, there was an opportunity to meet each other and get connected - in a shared Shabbat evening meal we sat around one Shabbat table, members from the three different communities and sang Zemirot in Hebrew."

"It will be sad to say goodbye, but we will continue keeping in touch as individuals and as a group," added another participant.

Last March, a reciprocal visit took place here with the participants from Washington. They familiarized themselves with the area, sampled Israeli life and hosted a riveting olim panel, in which American, South African, Ethiopian and French olim told their aliya stories and that of their absorption into the Beit Shemesh community.

"The visit to Beit Shemesh was extremely successful. There is sincere willingness to be involved and to be mutually connected to all that happens in each of the communities. Although it was my first visit to Israel, there was a feeling in the air that Beit Shemesh is home and we are one family."

Local participants of the program are busy these days working on developing and running a community project in the area. After researching the community needs, the one issue chosen was the "youth". In the subsequent meetings, the participants will formulate the particular goals and next steps.