<p>I’m discussing options for the summer with my son and one thing which he didn’t do on his gap year but could fit into this summer is Taglit-Project Birthright. I know that there are a number of different programs run by different organizations, about which the websites don’t seem particularly informative. I wonder if you would have any advice as to which would be a good program for my son [in the list below, I’m guessing about what he’d like and dislike].</p>
<ul>
<li> He’s in his freshman year and will turn 20 before the summer.<br></li>
<li> He’s a super-bright, super-dyslexic kid who doesn’t do well with foreign languages including Hebrew.<br></li>
<li> The family I grew up in is Conservative bordering on Orthodox – observe Kashrut, all the kids (except for mine) attended Solomon Schecter Day Schools or Heschel through to college, some are Shomer Shabbos. We’re the black sheep in that regard. We rarely go to services, though we say the Kiddush Friday evenings and celebrate Pesach with family. We don’t observe Kashrut or much else. While my daughter feels a strong connection to Judaism, it is unclear that my son does. He had a Bar Mitzvah but it wasn’t the least bit clear he’d be able to do much reading/writing, so we did the Havdalah service and he spent most of his time thinking about his Dvar Torah, which was very thoughtful.</li>
<li> Something geared to my Schecter nieces and nephews would probably be lost on him and/or be annoying for him. [A program heavy on singing would be painful for him – he puts the Capital T in Tone Deaf and can’t think when music is on]. </li>
<li> He’s not a big one for organized programs, but he did a three week trip in the Colorado Rockies with Outward Bound and loved it – he likes the out of doors.<br></li>
<li> He’s very intellectual but wouldn’t want a school-oriented program. </li>
<li> He’s very well-traveled [UK, Canada, Mexico, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, China, Australia, Japan, Indonesia, Finland, and probably a few places I’ve forgotten to mention] but has never been to Israel.</li>
</ul>
<p>There are a couple of outdoor-oriented programs, but I couldn’t tell much about them. </p>
<p>Through your kids or others, do you have any insight you can share about which programs might be good for him?</p>
<p>P.S. I’m not sure where to post this, but I’ll try the Parents Forum.</p>
<p>Is there a Hillel at his school? They would probably have more information on the various trips. My D is planning on going on a Birthright trip with a group through her school. She investigated the more outdoor focused programs but thought it would be more fun to go with a group of students affiliated with her college.</p>
<p>The birthright program is fantastic, but short. If your son has a lot planned this summer, than birthright will be a wonderful trip to Israel. However, if your son wants to spend the entire summer in Israel, then he needs a longer program. You might want to ask your Hillel or Chabad at your son’s college campus if there is a birthright trip connected with one of the Jewish organizations on campus. Don’t worry about level of observance. PM me if you have more questions.</p>
<p>My daughter did Taglit-Birthright through the Hillel at her college. She also had a Bat Mitzvah, at age 21, during the Birthright trip. We are reform / mostly non-observant Jews (we celebrate the major holidays in a rather cursory manner). She has had no exposure to Hebrew - did all readings for her Bat Mitzvah in English. The group she was with included students from across the spectrum – from very orthodox to secular Jews.</p>
<p>My d. had a wonderful time and considers it to be an extremely meaningful experience for her. She made some good friends on the trip and since returning is staying involved with Hillel. </p>
<p>I’d highly recommend that program and I do think it was good that my daughter chose to go with her college group, because it has allowed her to continue to interact with her new-found Hillel/Birthright friends after her return. I think that if your son goes on any other organized group to Israel, it could disqualify him from Birthright --which is designed for kids who have not traveled to Israel already – so if he is considering any other program, it would make sense to do birthright first.</p>
<p>I have the sense that my daughter felt very welcome and comfortable with the group, even though her level of exposure to her religion has been rather superficial in the past. I know that one of her closest friends on the trip is a young man who is orthodox – so I think that one of the great benefits of the program is the opportunity for kids from different traditions and backgrounds to dialog. </p>
<p>I think the actual itinerary of various Birthright trips might be different – but my daughter’s trip had a lot of outdoorsy stuff – they swam in the dead sea, slept in a Bedouin tent, rode camels across the desert. </p>
<p>If you have any questions, please feel free to pm me. My d. tends to be very cynical and not a big fan of organized activities – and she has traveled extensively throughout the world on her own. So I thought that she might feel frustrated or constrained with the group-tour aspect of the Birthright trip – but she has only spoken very positively. </p>
<p>My d. is a poli sci major, interested in studying international conflict – so I think that she went in part with a sense of wanting to get a better understanding of the political situation in Israel. She did feel that she gained a new perspective on that issue as well.</p>
<p>One option is to extend your stay after the Birthright trip is completed. So, for not very much more money, your kid could stay longer and do some more independent traveling.</p>
<p>I thought that there were very few Birthright trips during the summer. Aren’t most at other times of the year?</p>
<p>I think that all birthright trips are either over the summer or during January. So there are probably more trips during the summer, as there are trips scheduled from May through August.</p>
<ul>
<li>I just did some checking and apparently winter trips could be scheduled in other months as well – so it may be that there isn’t much difference.</li>
</ul>
<p>calmom, which organization was the leader of your daughter’s program?</p>
<p>There is a Hillel at my son’s school, although it seems to be shared with one of the local women’s colleges. It is a little hard to tell what exactly it is. He has not been and didn’t go to High Holiday services, which we always have done. [I’m not sure I always went when I was in college and I went to services every Shabbat morning and read the Torah for the synagogue for a few years so I can hardly hold it against him]. But, I think I’ll email the coordinator of the program.</p>
<p>My objective was just to strengthen the attachment and closeness to Judaism/Jewish people. I’m not seeking greater religious involvement. He has had the opportunity and has not sought it (and I’m not a great role model).</p>
<p>ALF and mdcissp, I’ll ask him about staying longer in Israel. Last summer, he did want to travel in Europe but his friends dropped out of that at the last minute. He’s made friends with a Swiss kid at school, so he might be able to visit there as well. He’s got a book to finish and then he was offered an internship that he would like to take if he can with an appeals court judge, but the timing on that is flexible.</p>
<p>all the programs will keep shabbot. All the group meals will be at kosher establishments. Go on to the birthright webpage and read about each of the groups.
Winter trips can start as early as November and as late as March.</p>
<p>Shawbridge, I’m not sure what you are asking about “which organization” – Hillel itself is a sponsoring organization – see [Taglit-Birthright</a> Israel: North American Trip Organizers](<a href=“http://www.birthrightisrael.com/site/PageServer?pagename=trip_natolist]Taglit-Birthright”>http://www.birthrightisrael.com/site/PageServer?pagename=trip_natolist) – The trip was coordinated with Hillel chapters at other colleges - my daughter was with a group of about 40 students which included Hillel-sponsored students from other nearby campuses. I do know that Hillel works with a travel agent that specializes in this, but I don’t remember the name of the agency. The only contact person I had before the trip was with Hillel, not the travel agency.</p>
<p>As to your statement, “My objective was…” – I’m a little concerned. My daughter’s trip very definitely strengthened her feelings of involvement and ties to Jews & Judaism, on many different levels… but she - not me – is the one who decided on the trip. As far as I knew, her objective was “free trip to someplace she hadn’t been before.” My only concern as a parent was safety - and my single contact with the trip director was an email to get the specific flight numbers she was on for travel, as my d. didn’t have that info for me and I like being able to check and track flight times online. </p>
<p>So the answer is yes – the birthright trip definitely could meet your objective, but unfortunately they do not offer it to anyone over the age of 26. I hope you are not trying to nudge your kid toward doing something he is not interested in – he will get more from the trip if and when he decides he wants to do it, and religious & spiritual life and feelings of connectedness are something that is uniquely personal.</p>
<p>Sorry, calmom. Phrasing problems – I should have said, my hope rather than my objective. My son is interested in the trip but he has managed to be successful at things by extreme focus. Coursework, one EC (currently debate team), and a limited amount of socializing are the only thing he’ll focus on right now. He’ll be happy to make the trip, but I’ll have to do the work or it will wait.</p>
<p>As to what organizations, on the webpage you linked to, I hadn’t noticed that Hillel was one of the sponsoring organizations. My son’s college is pretty small – less than 1700 kids total so I doubt it is going to send a contingent but who knows. I’ll investigate tomorrow. Knowing nothing else, I would pick the Israel Outdoor’s program that Chedva’s daughter attended but if there is a group at his college, that might be really good for the reasons you’ve described.</p>
<p>My daughter did the Taglit-Israel Outdoors program in June following her freshman year. It was a great experience… she registered with a friend on her own-registration should be just opening around now. The program was more like an sleepaway camp trip in Israel, met great people, well-planned touring in which they really do cover the country, no knowledge of Hebrew required. You do need to do the entire program. If planning to meet any friends or family, that can only be done on the nights when in Jerusalem or Tel Aviv, as long as not Shabbat… but best to plan to do that by extending the trip. You must fly home on a Taglit group flight and you do have to pay -maybe $100 or so. My daughter was unable to do that because of summer job commitment, but other friends did.Her friend did Taglit and then a six-week Hebrew language class at University of Haifa.</p>
<p>If he’s a hands-on do-er, you might google up “Israel volunteer programs” as there are many ways to extend the time after the taglit tour. Taglit is great because it gives an overview of the land, and the pace moves quickly. By staying on longer, he can travel or connect himself with a volunteer task with young people from around the globe. That is the heart of the Israel experience, IMHO.</p>
<p>Also google and see what he thinks of “Save a Child’s Heart” for their volunteer opportunities in the house where children and families from around the globe await lifesaving heart surgeries for children. They need imaginative people who can just help kids and siblings pass the time while waiting between various medical tests, and during recovery. My friend’s son did this for a month and enjoyed it a lot. He was playing with the kids and getting to know their families, from everywhere. </p>
<p>None of these things are bookish (including Taglit). Israelis are do-ers for the most part and he might enjoy fitting in with a variety of social justice projects that young people do with a lot of energy and heart.</p>
<p>My S just came back from a Taglit birthright tour in January and said it was the best time imaginable; plenty of outdoor hiking. The learning about each place comes from the Israeli tourguides, not bookstudy. English is used everywhere; it won’t be a problem for your S.</p>
<p>The Taglit Birthright l0-day travel programs are very popular, so if he becomes interested, should take note of the next Registration Day and jump on it early that day. No kidding.</p>
<p>From what you describe I would NOT seek advice from Chabad on what to do next with free time in ISrael, unless you want him to go to a yeshiva there. Seek other alternatives; Hillel is a better source, plus simply following Googles of “volunteer opportunities Israel.” If he likes the outdoors, also check out Arava Institute (for desert ecology and wildlife) to see if there are short-term volunteer opportunities on their site in the Negev (south).</p>
<p>Another vote here for Israel Outdoors. I went on the Dec 08 trip and loved pretty much every minute of it. We did usually have one Hebrew word-of-the-day, but no language instruction besides that. Everybody in our group was respectful of varying levels of observance. We went on multiple hikes and other outdoor activities, but nothing too challenging. Also saw most of the major sites; Western Wall, Yad Vashem, Masada, Dead Sea, Red Sea, Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Tzfat, the Negev, etc.</p>
<p>There is some sort of application process. I don’t know what it is, but I had the impression that my d. had to answer some sort of questionnaire and maybe even attend an interview or some sort of meeting as part of the process. So its not the same as when you make airline reservations for your kid – you could do some research, but he’d have to do some of the prep work to get an application in. Also, I may be mistaken, but my impression is that a student is limited to ONE application – if they don’t get selected based on that application, then they can apply again the next “season”.</p>
<p>Anyway the point is that if your son wants to go on a Birthright trip, he’s going to have to “do the work” of applying. The application process for summer trips begins on Feb. 17th – so the logical thing to do would be to fill out the form and select a trip then… and then wait to hear. (I assume that early apps probably have a better chance of being accepted than late ones, but that’s just based on my impression that its not a particularly selective process but that it is a very popular program and there are a limited number of spots).</p>
<p>
Many of the Hillel groups are combined from several different colleges. So its not like one college group has to bring in enough to fill a full group. It’s all coordinated so that by the time they are ready to leave there will be several hundred Birthright kids on the same plane, each with instructions in hand as to which bus is associated with their group after they land in Israel.</p>
My daughter’s trip via Hillel was entirely funded by Birthright – cost to her was -0- – but she was required to make a $250 deposit, fully refundable at the end of the trip. The purpose of the deposit really was to make sure she showed up and stayed with the group.</p>
<p>However, there are a lot of expenses associated with travel – so it wasn’t entirely a free trip. That is, my d. had to pay for food outside of the group meals & other incidentals, and obviously kids are going to want to shop for souvenirs, etc.</p>
<p>My son went to Israel via Taglit a few years ago. Had a wonderful time. Yes, it’s too short, but we was glad to have the opportunity to go. In fact, a year later he was studing in England and when he had a week holiday from school, he flew to Isreal for that week, so his Taglit trip certainly helped him to forge a bond with The Land. His experiences were largely positive and we hope to send our daughters to Israel via Taglit soon. It is a wonderful organization. </p>
<p>One thing about the trip that saddened him: there were a few parties while on the trip and several in his group drank in excess. My son was amazed that here they were having this amazing opportunity and they wasted some if it by being very drunk. What is the point of going on a trip if you are going to forget portions of it because you are so drunk. Just sad. Anyway, it’s a detail that you may want to discuss with your son in advance. Drinking is one thing, but drinking to such an excess is another thing entirely.</p>
<p>Both of my kids did Birthright trips. Both had incredible experiences. One did Shorashim and one did Israel Outdoors. I highly recommend Israel Outdoors. We are Reform and it was just right. Because of the day that Shabbat fell on, the Israel Outdoors trip was 12 days rather than the usual 10, which was a terrific bonus. If you have any specific questions, please feel free to PM me.</p>