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September 18, 2009
Internship inspires students
Ethiopian Israelis work at local law firms and share their stories.
LAUREN KRAMER
With ebony hair reaching down her back, a petite figure and gorgeous lashes framing her dark eyes, Jerus Truneh could easily pass for a model. The 26-year-old Ethiopian Israeli law student was in Vancouver this past month gaining experience at the law firm Blake, Cassels and Graydon LLP, and telling her personal story to Jewish schools, synagogues and community groups.
She was one of two Ethiopian Israelis in our city this summer, joined by Erez Naga, 29, also a law student entering his second year of studies at Ono Academic College near Tel Aviv.
The two students are enrolled in law school, supported by funds raised by the Canadian Ben Gurion Society (BGS), a young leadership program launched by Jewish federations across Canada.
"Members of the BGS visited Ethiopia and Israel in 2006 and, on that visit, they saw Ono Academic College and were impressed by the fact that it offers scholarships to Ethiopian students on a higher level than any other college in the country," said Stephen Gaerber, vice-president of the Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver and the initiator of this project. "The group was moved by this and the program was begun, to start funding scholarships for academically qualified Ethiopian students to study business and law at the college."
There are approximately 177 Ethiopian students at Ono Academic College, where the student population is 8,000. A three-year degree costs NIS 28,000. In the two years since this fundraising project began, BGS has funded nearly 10 degrees, said Mindy Ecklove, national director of young leadership at the United Israel Appeal.
"Last year, we decided to take this project a step beyond the financial, because in Israel, even if you have a degree, it can be hard to get a job without connections," she explained. "So we started a volunteer-driven internship program in Canada for students."
In 2008, three students visited Toronto, while this year, two were sent to Vancouver and two to Toronto, the latter from the Interdisciplinary Centre in Herzliyah.
As he reflected on his month in Vancouver, just days before his return to Israel, Naga said his experience was excellent. "We've had a chance to learn from the best and, for me, that meant being around 100 lawyers working together at Lawson, Lundell.... But also meeting members of the Vancouver Jewish community has changed my perspective," he said. "People here are more Jewish even than those in Israel."
Naga said his time with fellow Ethiopian and lawyer Ben Gabriel, as well as Irv Laskin at Lawson Lundell, was inspiring. "Seeing the way they think, their approach to problem-solving has been so beneficial, far more helpful than studying legal texts," he said.
Naga left a small farming village in Ethiopia's Gondar province at the age of five and, in 1984, was among the first to make aliyah with Operation Moses. He and his family made their way by foot from Ethiopia to Sudan over four difficult months, surviving attacks by bandits and starvation that claimed the lives of many of their fellow travellers.
Among the first to make aliyah, they found themselves in absorption centres that were ill-prepared for their arrival. But the Naga family forged ahead, found work and settled in their new home. Naga became a sergeant in the Golani combat unit of the Israeli Defence Forces and, when he completed his service, travelled extensively in Asia.
His plan is to finish law school and start a business degree at Ono College right away. "We have so many lawyers in Israel that you need something more," he said. "I'll practise law initially, but I want to start a business where I am the boss. I don't want to work for anyone else."
Truneh said she has always wanted to be a lawyer. "Ono is a prestigious academic college, and this degree will allow me to enter mainstream Israeli society," she explained. Her move from Ethiopia to Israel came a decade after that of Naga, with 1994's Operation Solomon. She spent a year in an immigrant absorption centre, served in the army and worked in a variety of jobs before starting her studies.
"I'm so thankful to the organizations that have funded my studies," she said earnestly. "What they're doing by giving us education is a great thing, and we pass it forward by mentoring new Ethiopian immigrants and acting as role models. I want to thank those organizations for helping us realize our dreams and encourage them to continue doing what they do."
Naga agreed. "Many Vancouver Jews I've spoken to feel bad about not being in Israel, but they need to understand that they're doing great things from here," he said. "They're defending Israel from here, giving us a voice, and the country needs that. Vancouver's Jewish community should feel good, because they're doing a fantastic job here."
Lauren Kramer is a Vancouver freelance writer.
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