As we planned our first congregational trip to Israel, I had three main goals: to see the country and its people, to instill a love for Israel in our participants, and to create a family-focused approach to each day with appropriate educational/spiritual perspectives. The fact that I was taking my three children (ages 15 through 10) for their first Israel experiences made this trip even more significant and purposeful. We engaged Melitz to create and run our tour and Alexandra Benjamin to be our tour guide/educator. We could not have been more satisfied by the experience!
I was clear on my hopes and dreams for the tour. To mention a few: More than just visiting the Kotel and being moved by its spiritual import, I wanted my congregants to grapple with the challenging issues raised by the orthodox nature of this site. More than just walking through Jerusalem’s many neighborhoods, I wanted these families to explore the joys and challenges of diverse groups living in such close proximity. Visiting the North post-Lebanon 2 to witness first-hand the destruction and danger, I hoped we would connect with how various Israelis grappled with the fear, anxiety, determination and hope inherent in this conflict. In fact, rather than merely taking us to a collection of historical/spiritually significant sites, Melitz created a family-centered educational experience that touched us intellectually, spiritually, culturally, and emotionally as Jews.
Melitz-led tours view each day through the prism of an educational theme. We received well-developed resource books – one for adults, one specially prepared for children – which primed us for each day’s theme. Stories, articles and pictures previewed and enhanced the day’s activities. We enjoyed the way that our tour guide Alexandra Benjamin, with her wonderfully British English accent, related each site visit and each family activity to our day’s theme.
Our Melitz tour leader is a licensed guide AND trained educator. Specializing in family education, she worked wonders to engage simultaneously older adults, single parents, younger and older children, and solo adults. With the help of a youth counselor, she created activities which helped each family reflect on the micro and meta-issues raised through our experiences. Song and story, historical review and hilarious anecdotes brought the group together.
Of course, there were times we split the adults off from the children. While we toured Yad Vashem, for instance, the children explored age-appropriate issues with other trained Melitz staff. During a session with the World Union of Progressive Judaism director Rabbi Uri Regev, our children released pent up energy in supervised recreational activities with the youth counselor.
I was very pleased with the partnership between Melitz and the Rabbi (me) and our Educator. We were fully briefed prior to the trip, worked in partnership over the phone, by email and in person to develop a trip itinerary which reflected our interests and our educational goals. During the trip, we worked together to adjust the trip to the realities on the ground and the group needs. Our Melitz tour guide/educator regularly invited and encouraged my Educator and me expand or contract our own level of leadership. The sense of partnership was refreshing.
We are very fond of our tour guide Alexandra Benjamin and appreciative of our educational tour company Melitz. We are in the beginning stages of planning our next congregational family trip to Israel. Rest assured that Melitz will be our guide and partner.
L’Shalom,
Rabbi Paul J. Kipnes
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