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At Least the Sun is Shining
I have spent almost a week in Israel, and one could assume that my days have been filled with endless discussion about what will happen with Iran or with the Palestinians, the American election and its impact on Israel, or the daily twists and turns of daily Israeli politics. Actually, these things have scarcely been the focus. I came, together with six volunteer leaders from our community, for the steering meetings related to our partnership with the Upper Galilee region. Following those meetings, our Vancouver contingent stayed on to check in on several important programs we support directly from our Federation Annual Campaign.

Through the partnership and our direct allocations, we have focused on two key areas: closing social gaps in Israeli society by investing in opportunities and resources for youth and young adults living in the periphery of Israeli society; and strengthening the capacity of our remote partnership region to better address its challenges. And so my week has been filled with deep discussion and analysis of the social challenges facing Israeli society, the state of its educational system, and the levers for changes that could bring different opportunities for many who are being left behind as the centre of the country surges forward economically and in other ways.

Sitting in Tel Aviv you could easily jump to the conclusion that we have nothing left to do here. Drive two hours north (or south) and you enter a different world, where the place you were born can be the major determinant of the quality of education you will receive, the kind of unit in the army you might be able to get into, your shot at higher education or choice of career, and even your life expectancy.

I won't go into a lot of detail about our work here, but rather will point you to either our website, or to the recent beautiful blog postings by community member, Brenda Yablon, who visited here last winter for a few months. The role we play in our region is rather extraordinary for a community our size. Our impact is magnified by the way we have stayed focused on one region and on a few key interrelated strategies, which have enabled us to go deep into the issues we are trying to address, and strengthen the relationships we are building.

There were two important transitions of leadership in our partnership work this week. Mayor Aharon Valency, head of the Galil Elyon Regional Council, is retiring after 23 years as mayor. Mayor Valency has been the strongest and most strategic political leader in the region. In recent years, he has galvanized the whole of the Eastern Galilee into a regional cluster that has been given formal status by the Israeli government, and which holds a lot of promise for strengthening the region. Mayor Valency is a true visionary, and while he will still remain involved in the region, we will miss his active presence in the partnership. Stephen Gaerber, who has and continues to fill many leadership roles in our own community, is now the Canadian co-chair of the partnership's steering committee, bringing his considerable leadership talents and menschlikheit to this complex partnership.

It is easy to get swept up in the drama of high stakes internal and regional politics here, but that is not our mission - it's not why our group came this week. We came as a fulfillment of our community's timeless responsibility and opportunity to do our part in the endless task of building the Jewish state. Believe me, we have much still left to accomplish here, but we should all take tremendous pride in the work that we are doing.

The Aftermath of Hurricane Sandy
Shortly after I landed in Israel, I watched with horror as my home state of New York and many other areas on the eastern seaboard were devastated by Hurricane Sandy. The scope of damage is enormous, and several days later there are still many people coping with many serious challenges. If you are looking for a way to respond to emergency needs caused by the hurricane, Jewish Federation has opened an emergency relief fund. One hundred percent of the donations will be forwarded to urgent needs identified through the network of Jewish Federations.

Shabbat shalom!