The JNF USA National Board of Directors Leadership Mission came to Israel for a week-long tour of the country, from Kiryat Shmona in the north all the way down to Eilat in the south. Together, some forty representatives from all over the USA visited some of the many projects supported by the organization and held meetings with their Israeli partners.
The itinerary for the visit included, among other things, a meeting with the KKL-JNF Board of Directors in Jerusalem; a visit to the Halutza communities and the ALEH Rehabilitation Village in the Negev; and visits to Sderot, Yeruham, Beersheba, Wadi Atir, the Arava’s Vidor Center, the Arava International Center for Agricultural Training (AICAT), the Arava Center for Renewable Energy, and Timna Park.
“It’s very important for the members of the National Board of Directors to see what we’re really doing,” said Leadership Mission Chairman Alan Dabrow. “We can talk endlessly about our activities, but there’s no substitute for a visit to Israel. The moment we get here we feel connected, because the country sells itself. I’ve visited Israel more than twenty times over the years, and each time I’m amazed to see how it’s changed. Israel is strong, and it is vital to the continued existence of Diaspora Jewry.”
“We haven’t come here for a visit,” declared JNF USA CEO Russell Robinson. “This is a journey born out of our commitment to Israel. We’re not building projects; we’re promoting a vision and cooperation.”
Kiryat Shmona: A new technology center
The tour of northern Israel began in Kiryat Shmona. There, they participated in an unveiling ceremony for the medicinal food and technology incubator that is being established in the city with the support of JNF USA and KKL-JNF. In the city center an abandoned historic building – formerly Kiryat Shmona’s first high school – is to be transformed into this innovative center, which will combine hi-tech, food, agriculture and medicine thus helping to promote both the city and the Galilee as a whole.
Harold Kaplan of Illinois, who is a member of the JNF USA task force for strengthening northern Israel, opened the ceremony and explained that the aim is to boost northern Israel’s economy and increase its population. “It’s exciting to see how the vision we all share is gradually taking shape,” he said.
“We shall build this center together and continue to make the city grow,” said Kiryat Shmona Mayor Rabbi Nissim Malka. “From here we shall send out a message that our dream is being realized, and there is no doubt that, together with you, we shall succeed in our undertaking.”
Giora Inbar, chairman of the Yozma Leumit (“National Initiative”) association, said that the objective is to establish a center that will create a better future for local residents. “The Kiryat Shmona center will be a model and an example for the rest of the country and the world,” he said.
Druze community representative Shakib Shanan of Horfeish defined the center as “a place of hope,” and added: “Together we shall make the country bloom and create something where before there was nothing.”
“Here, of all places, in this old abandoned building, we can see the vision,” declared Upper Galilee Regional Council Chairman Giora Salz. “Without those who were crazy enough to build in Galilee, the State of Israel would look very different. This plan is based upon the strengths we possess, and it will reshape the entire area into a center for excellence.”
“Together we shall transform Kiryat Shmona into a leading regional center,” said MK Erel Margalit, one of the initiators behind the establishment of the technological center. He explained that the objective is to create fifteen thousand new jobs in technology and another twenty-five thousand in other fields. The Kiryat Shmona center, he said, would form part of a network of new technological centers to be founded all over Israel.
“Israel is ready to move on and take a leap forward within the context of a major process,” he said. “Each one of us, when we think of Israel’s future, we think of our children and grandchildren, and we know that we are working for them. Kiryat Shmona will become a creative incubator and an urban center that will encourage young people to remain in the area. The partnership with JNF USA and KKL-JNF is a wonderful example of Jewish involvement that enables us to do great things together.”
Science students and teaching staff at Kiryat Shmona’s Danziger High School were introduced to the visitors as an example of Israel’s up-and-coming generation. Environmental researcher Emily al-Hacham, who has gained the support of JNF USA, welcomed the local high-school students and encouraged them to continue with scientific research in the future.
Tel Hai: A pioneering spirit in academia
The group next made its way to Tel Hai College, where students welcomed them for an introductory dialogue session. Their guide was Rachel Sachs, who is in charge of the college’s liaison department. “Tel Hai College is part of the Galilee story, and it harnesses local knowledge for the benefit of research of global significance,” she explained.
Some 3,700 students attend the college, over 70% of whom are from central Israel – evidence of the institution’s ability to attract young people to the north. The college has thirteen departments of academic studies and seven MA study tracks, and people at Tel Hai hope to turn it into Israel’s leading research college in the years to come.
There are also plans to provide accommodation facilities for Tel Hai students in Kiryat Shmona, with the support of KKL-JNF.
“This is an amazing place we’ve got here, and it has a pioneering spirit,” emphasized Hanna Pri-Zan, Chairperson of Tel Hai College’s Board of Directors.
“Many students will tell you that they come here because it’s such a beautiful place, while others have chosen a particular course of study,” said Rachel Sachs. “But when all is said and done, Tel Hai is built on the people who work and study here, and that’s what makes it so special.”
“This mission gives us a chance to meet, discuss the various projects and see them for ourselves, instead of making do with just reading reports,” said Bruce Gould of Florida.
“Tel Hai College is an economic growth engine for the Galilee,” concluded Russell Robinson at the end of the visit.
Maalot: A city with momentum
The next stop on the itinerary was Maalot-Tarshiha, which is situated just a few kilometers away from Israel's border with Lebanon. Mayor Shlomo Buhbut guided the guests on a tour of the city. Maalot-Tarshiha is home to some twenty-one thousand people, about 70% of whom are Jewish, and 30% of whom are Arab Muslim and Christian.
On their visit to the Montfort Lake, the guests were impressed by the development underway for the establishment of an ecological tourist park in conjunction with JNF USA, KKL-JNF and government ministries. The park will include a man-made stream with waterfalls, an extreme sports area, hotels, restaurants and a shopping center. New housing neighborhoods with magnificent views are springing up around the lake.
“The park will attract tens of thousands of tourists and create 2,500 new jobs,” said Mayor Buhbut. “With our partners’ help we shall realize the Zionist dream of creating a green country and building our future.”
Shlomi: Work, education and quality of life
At Shlomi’s Erez College the delegates met up with its director Yossi Gimon, who provides vocational training for workers in industry. JNF USA has assisted the college in building advanced laboratories where students can learn about natural gas, hydraulics, pneumatics, computer numerical control (CNC) and microcontrollers.
“In order to attract new residents to the Galilee region we need to establish factories and create jobs,” said Yossi Gimon. “The key is knowledge that stems from education, together with entrepreneurship. The college is in constant contact with over a hundred manufacturers in the Galilee region, and this is what enables us to extend our activities.”
Gimon added that the college hopes to establish an incubator for startups that will create an entrepreneurial atmosphere in Galilee and attract young entrepreneurs to the north.
Businesswoman and philanthropist Raya Strauss addressed the delegates and said: “Our shared goal is to create new jobs in the north so as to ensure a good livelihood and fair wages, while at the same time conserving local residents’ quality of life. People in Galilee are working together to this end, and I greatly appreciate KKL-JNF’s vision for promoting northern Israel.”
Michal Shiloah-Galnur of the Western Galilee Now NGO pointed out that developing tourism in the Western Galilee would give the young generation the opportunity for a good life in the area. The organization holds meetings and workshops for outstanding personnel in the tourism industry and arranges excursions for travel agents and festivals for the general public.
“Work, quality of life and education – these are the three things that can attract families to the Galilee region,” said Aharon Ariel-Lavi of Makom, which, with the support of JNF USA, works to draw people to the Negev and Galilee and strengthen the fabric of Israeli society. It is helping some two hundred groups of young people to settle in developing regions in northern and southern Israel.
“Our way of strengthening the Galilee is to encourage new immigrants to settle in the region,” said Sharona Stanhill of Nefesh B'Nefesh. “It’s a wonderful area with breathtaking scenery, and it’s important to us that immigrants get a chance to see it, so that they can decide if they want to live there.”
Acco: Tourism’s display window
The day’s excursion to northern Israel concluded at the Visitors’ Center in Acco, which was established with the support of JNF USA. This historic building in the heart of the Old City, which has been conserved and restored, presents Acco’s fascinating history and the range of possibilities on offer for tourists and visitors to enjoy.
The Center provides a variety of services for tourists, including information on routes, guided tours, invitations to tourist attractions and accommodation bookings.
“It was very important during the tours to get an impression of what the JNF has helped to establish in Israel, but it was even more important to see what we’re going to do in the future,” concluded Michael Jacobson of Ohio.