The Charlotte Jewish News - November 1998 - Page 11
Youth Visions
Mickey Barak Aberman AZA Defends
Spirit Award at BBYO Winter Cultural
By Jordan Klemons, MBA Sopher
No, it’s not the Nobel Peace
Prize, but MBA AZA is proud of
the Spirit Award that we have won
for the last two years at the >^inter
Cultural. By the time you read this
we will know whether or not we
have won again, as the event takes
place in Charlotte on the last
weekend in October. As of this
writing, though, we are working
hard on coming up with a song, a
skit, a T-shirt design, a video and a
banner. We are competing against
chapters from all over North
Carolina.
Our newest members, our
Alephs-In-Training (AITs) just
came back from their annual con
vention. They discovered the great
spirit of BBYO and met other
AITs from around both North
Carolina and ^rginia. This con
vention helps build loyalty and
leadership in our youngest mem
bers. ^
Israel Without a Sound
By Lauren Gelfond
JERUSALEM — Six weeks of
hiking, rafting, touring, socializ
ing and learning-oriented adven
tures sounds like a dream to most
teenagers. That’s what 18-year-old
Micah Brown of Portland, Oregon
thought when he decided to apply
to summer programs for his first-
ever trip to Israel. But when he
received one rejection after anoth
er, Micah, who is deaf, wondered
if he would ever get to Israel after
all.
“I decided to go to Israel as a
culmination of my temple’s youth
study—our rabbi set this goal.
But, admittedly, yes, I was afraid I
wouldn’t fmd a program,” said
Micah (via e-mail). “I wanted to
go on a program with other deaf
Jewish teens, but the only avail
able deaf teen tours were Christian
— Hadassah’s Young Judaea was
the only program for Jewish teens
willing to even entertain the idea
of a deaf participant.”
Although no deaf person had
ever been involved with Young
Judaea’s Israel Programs,
Hadassah felt strongly that
Micah’s situation should not pre
clude him from participating —
and decided to find a way to make
it work. Numerous phone calls
were made and e-mails sent to
Hadassah members and to Young
Judaea alumni, resulting in several
thousand dollars in donations
towards the cost of an American
Sign Language interpreter to
accompany Micah to Israel.
“There was an immediate and
overwhelming response from indi
viduals asking how they could
help Micah,” says Miki Schulman,
Hadassah’s Coordinator of the
National Fundraising Division.
Hadassah is no stranger to the
deaf community, and in fact
recently initiated a special mem
bership program for the Jewish
deaf, in large part due to the com
mitment of National President
Marlene E. Post, a passionate
advocate for the disabled both in
Israel and the U.S. Hadassah’s
National Center for the Jewish
Deaf was launched at the
Hadassah National Convention,
where there were both computer
assisted translations and signing
for the deaf
Ultimately, nearly $5,000 was
raised for Micah in less than two
weeks, purely by word of mouth
and e-mail. “The cost of hiring
interpreters — one working morn
ings and early afternoons, another
working late afternoons and
evenings — would have amounted
to neariy $12,000. Fortunately, we
were able to recruit a Young
Judaea alumni with a background
in deaf education to work the full
tour with Micah,” says Gabriel
Most, Young Judaea’s Director of
Israel Programs.
Hadtf Dafny, a recent ccrflege
graduate, was looking to. go to
Israel for the summer and decided
to apply to her alma mater youth
group. Young Judaea, as a
madricha, counselor, for its sum
mer Israel program. “When they
saw my resume, they realized I
was the perfect person for the
job,” says Hadar, who is now off
to the Peace Corps to work with
the deaf population in Kenya.
Hadar and Micah traveled to
Israel together and became fast
friends. “I wouldn’t call myself
his interpreter,” says Hadar. “I was
his educator, his companion, his
friend and his liaison. “
Silent Wonder: Micah Blown anf fellow Young Judaeans enjoy an outdoors his
tory lesson this simmer in Israel. Micah looks on at his American Sign
Language interpreter, as his hearing peers listen.
“The summer was incredible for
both of us,” she added. “I educat
ed Micah about Israel and about
Hebrew, he educated me and the
entire group about sign language
and being deaf.”
At the end of the program,
Micah told Hadar he had the best
summer of his life.
“I loved just about everything
on the trip,” says Micah.
“Climbing Masada, snorkeling in
the Red Sea, rappelling down
Keshet Cave, visiting the ma'a-
palim camp.... I especially
enjoyed meeting the other kids in
my program, who were very inter
ested in learning sign language. As
a matter of fact, Hadar and I start
ed out teaching everyone at least
one word or phrase in sign lan
guage per day.”
“Our group in Maccabiah (teen
sp(xts competition) won the Most
Spirited Award,” Micah added.
“One of the reasons I think we did
was because several of our cheers
had sign language incorporated
into them — it was really fun
developing them with the other
chanichim (fwulicipants).”
Hadar also remembers the
Maccabiah games as a special
time. “I couldn’t believe it —
there I was signing in front of
AZA-BBYO-BBG ;
ALUMNI ASSOCIATION - NOW BEING FORMED .
ARE YOU AN ALUMNI FROM YOUR HOMETOWN? |
WE ARE PLANNING A REUNION!! ^
Please fill in this form |
Name I
Address
Chapter name |
City/state |
Mail to: Ellen Goldstein, BBYO city dir. ■
5007 Providence Rd., Charlotte, NO 28226 |
or call 366-5007 ext. 237 ■
nearly 2,(XX) people at the closing
ceremony of the games,” she said.
“The song ‘The Greatest Love of
All’ by Whitney Houston came on
and I was signing the words to
Micah, and he was singing the
words along with me in English.
He knew all the words by heart,
and it was an incredible moment
because we were all singing
together. We were a team.”
For Micah, the trip was also
special in a visual way — because
of a heightened visual awareness
he has from being deaf. “I think I
appreciated the visual aspects of
the trip even more than my hear-
BE
A
BBYO
pACKCl^l
Support Charlotte's BBYO
Scholarship Fund
by making a donation in honor ofi
^ your favorite teen»
^ in memory of a loved one
^ and ai^ other SPECIAL Occaelonlll
(Minimum donatioii is $5.00 and an
acknowledgement card will be sent)
^ Please send donations to ^
BBYO - Ellen Goldstein
5007 Providence Rd., Charlotte, NC 28210
llimiB'iialB'tlth
EH
Youth Organinttei
Charlotte Students Return
from Israel
ing counterparts,” he said. “For
example, when we went hiking in
the Negev, I was the only one
actually snapping pictures of the
seemingly barren landscape. The
way the sun hit the rocks was so
colorful...”
Micah’s father is thrilled that
Micah had this opportunity. “It is
highly unusual for a deaf teen to
travel with a group of hearing
teens. I think the trip gave Micah a
lot more confidence that he could
do what he wanted to do and that
barriers to success could be over
come,” he said. “He has also
gained a greater sense of indepen
dence. Young Judaea values all
kids and that makes me feel
great.”
Today, Micah says he feels his
Young Judaea experience has
helped him understand Israeli life
and Judaism more. Now he looks
to the future, and hopes that such
special experiences will be possi
ble for other Jewish deaf teens. “I
can honestly say that the YJ pro
gram changed a lot for me.... and I
hope someday there will be a
similar prograq) geared paiticular-
ly for deaf Jewish teens. Who
knows? Maybe soiii^^day. I'll
be tiw first madrick of this
group...” O
“Last summer I went to my high
school history class on top of a
mountain and experienced the his
tory of Masada where it actually
happened,” says Tommy Mann, a
recent graduate of the Alexander
Muss High School in Israel. Two
students from Charlotte returned
Students visited the site of the
Dead Sea Scrolls at the Shrine of
the Book at the museum in
Jerusalem. They hiked/climbed to
the Qumran caves where they
were discovered.
Students had the opportunity to
experience a different culture
Site of the Dead Sea Scrolb: Shrine of the Book at the museum in Jerusalem.
this summer from an eight week
educational program at the
Alexander Muss High School in
Israel where they relived more
than 2,000 years of Western
Civilization.
“It’s a combination of learning
and fun,” says Josh Klein. On the
first trip, the students hiked to a
place called Tel Oeser, sat dow.i
and be^M their clan. Befm'
they retiized tfiey wore
the same spot that was
in the book!
while earning both high school
and college credit for their studies.
They liked attending AMHSI
because the program gave them
the opportunity to study history
where it actually tu^>peaed.
The Alexander Muss High
School in Israel offers five
eight-week sessions throughout
the ytmt. For mon iefenntkMi,
^ease conoct tfae Mid-Soutli
Dirbdor of A4stts6ldes, Lieii
in at 336-
297-9665. O