{"id":19842,"date":"2016-07-01T00:25:36","date_gmt":"2016-07-01T07:25:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/?p=19842"},"modified":"2016-06-29T20:02:54","modified_gmt":"2016-06-30T03:02:54","slug":"shinshin-programs-first-year","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/2016\/07\/01\/shinshin-programs-first-year\/","title":{"rendered":"Shinshin program\u2019s first year"},"content":{"rendered":"

Shinshiniot, left to right, Ophir Golombek, Tomer Tetro and Lian Swissa. (photo by Michelle Dodek)<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Nine months ago, Ophir Golombek, Lian Swissa and Tomer Tetro were just the names of three Israeli 18-year-olds brought to Vancouver by the Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver and the Jewish Agency for Israel. Having spent the school year helping at Vancouver Talmud Torah (VTT), Richmond Jewish Day School (RJDS), King David High School (KDHS), the Jewish Community Centre of Greater Vancouver and the Hebrew schools at congregations Beth Israel, Beth Tikvah and Temple Sholom, these young women are now known and loved by many across the Lower Mainland.<\/p>\n

The women have been here for a shnat sherut<\/em> (year of service, for which the acronym is shinshin) before entering the army, not as an alternative to time in uniform. The program has been running in other cities for more than a decade, but this was the first year for Vancouver. Designed to spread a connection and love for the people and country of Israel, the shinshiniot<\/em> (female plural for shinshin) engaged the youth of Vancouver\u2019s Jewish community through dance, song, food and educational programming.<\/p>\n

The Shinshin program hinges on a series of homestay experiences where families with children in high school or younger host a shinshin for a three-month period. Federation works to match each shinshin with families that are a good fit in order to facilitate a connection between the families and the shinshiniot, sharing the Canadian experience and Israeli culture while bonding as Jewish people.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe best thing about the year was the host families,\u201d said Swissa. \u201cI made amazing deep connections and was welcomed as part of the family. It\u2019s such a crucial part of the program.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Friedman-Leidemann family \u2013 parents Diane and Mark and 13-year-old son Isaac \u2013 opened their home to Golombek. Living very close to VTT, it was convenient for Golombek to get to and from her daily work at the school and the family was happy to open their home to her.<\/p>\n

\u201cHosting Ophir was a lovely experience,\u201d said Friedman. \u201cWe have hosted \u2018traditional\u2019 homestays for 10 years, so we have lots of experience to compare this to and it was truly wonderful.\u201d<\/p>\n

She added, however, that having the shinshiniot work six days a week made exploring very difficult. \u201cIt would be nice if the girls could have a two- to three-day weekend once a month so that they could explore areas near Vancouver not conducive to day trips,\u201d said Friedman.<\/p>\n

Lissa Weinberger, manager of Jewish education and identity initiatives at Federation, was tasked with rolling out the Shinshin program in Vancouver. \u201cIt has been an amazing first year,\u201d she said. \u201cFrom the first time I had a child excitedly talk about the visit their class had from the shinshin to the last goodbye hugs, there has not been an experience quite like this in Vancouver. The biggest highlight of the year was having them for Yom Hazikaron and Yom Ha\u2019atzmaut. Our community and especially our kids had such a positive Israeli experience, one that could only be created by the firsthand experience of Israeli teens.\u201d<\/p>\n

The year has not been without its challenges. Federation recognizes that culture shock and homesickness were real issues, and they plan to have a native Hebrew-speaking social worker or psychologist as part of the support team next year. They are currently reaching out for host families, as well. \u201cWe are looking for families who have the routine of the school year, of having kids, because hosting a shinshin is bringing a teenager into your family,\u201d said Weinberger.<\/p>\n

Tanyss Bugis, who has two teenagers attending KDHS, said, \u201cHosting Lian was good for our family and my teenaged kids and it was good for Lian. For us, it was a terrific experience.\u201d<\/p>\n

The skills and warmth of the shinshiniot were put to a variety of uses over the year. Tetro is an accomplished dancer and she worked with Grade 4s at VTT and RJDS to prepare for Festival Ha\u2019Rikud. At Beth Israel, Swissa used her artistic skills to create props and 3-D games about Israeli customs, culture and holiday celebrations. All three women did Israeli programming at the synagogue Hebrew schools, where they worked alternating Sundays; the weekends they were not at Hebrew school, they provided youth programming on Shabbat mornings.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe kids we met now have a better understanding of the complexity of being a teen in Israel,\u201d said Swissa. \u201cThey have a better idea that Israel is a nuanced, complex country. We were also able to bring a better understanding of really important events like Yom Hazikaron.\u201d<\/p>\n

During the school week, RJDS, VTT, KDHS and the JCC had programming provided by one or more of the shinshiniot. Golombek was full-time at VTT, visiting the classes with age-appropriate lessons on everything from women in Israeli society and history to Yom Hazikaron traditions. Jennifer Shecter-Balin, director of admissions and communications at VTT, said, \u201cHaving a young Israeli emissary at the school was a logical and natural way to build bridges with \u2013 and interest in \u2013 Israel.\u201d<\/p>\n

Shecter-Balin also acted as a host-mother. \u201cFor our family, hosting a shinshinit was a wonderfully positive experience,\u201d she said. \u201cAfter our time with Ophir, we feel as though we now have another close family member living in Israel and we anticipate maintaining our bond. We would definitely host again!\u201d<\/p>\n

Of the challenges, Shecter-Balin said there were inevitable hiccups but that VTT sees the benefits of increasing the scope of the program with two shinshiniot for next year. \u201cWe anticipate a smoother transition and integration with two emissaries working together and supporting each other,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

During Shabbat services on June 25, Swissa organized a party with Israeli snacks and games. It turned out to be a surprise farewell party for her, too. It was the second such party for her on a Shabbat morning; the other was for her 19th birthday.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe love having Lian here. She\u2019s awesome!\u201d said 10-year-old Aria Levitt.<\/p>\n

Swissa said it was hard for her to say goodbye to the kids. \u201cAs a shinshinit, we develop a deep connection to the kids. It\u2019s sad to say goodbye.\u201d<\/p>\n

Not quite finished their service in our community yet, Tetro is off to Camp Hatikvah for the summer and Golombek will be at Camp Miriam. Both will help with programming, adding to the already rich Zionist fabric of the camps. Swissa continues her stay in Vancouver contributing an Israeli flavor to the JCC\u2019s Camp Shalom.<\/p>\n

Tetro summed up her experience in a goodbye speech at a party thrown by Federation for the shinshiniot. \u201cThe Jewish community here is amazing and I am so grateful to have been part of it,\u201d she said. \u201cI am so thankful to have met all these incredible people, thank you for being my extended family for the year.\u201d<\/p>\n

Federation is looking for families to host a shinshinit for a three-month period in the coming school year. The new group of four young women will arrive at the end of August for an orientation. If you are interested in being a host family, contact Federation at info@jewishvancouver.com<\/a> or call Shelley Rivkin at 604-527-5111.<\/p>\n

Michelle Dodek<\/strong> is a mother and a writer in Vancouver whose children benefited greatly from their relationships with the shinshiniot.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Shinshiniot, left to right, Ophir Golombek, Tomer Tetro and Lian Swissa. (photo by Michelle Dodek) Nine months ago, Ophir Golombek, Lian Swissa and Tomer Tetro were just the names of three Israeli 18-year-olds brought to Vancouver by the Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver and the Jewish Agency for Israel. Having spent the school year helping […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":19824,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[2265,6043,4330,6026,6042],"class_list":["post-19842","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-local","tag-federation","tag-homestay","tag-israel","tag-shinshin","tag-shinshiniot"],"blocksy_meta":{"styles_descriptor":{"styles":{"desktop":"","tablet":"","mobile":""},"google_fonts":[],"version":8}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19842","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19842"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19842\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/19824"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19842"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19842"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19842"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}