Five years ago, a couple living in Samaria decided to help connect Jewish students to the land of Israel by providing free Sabbath hospitality and encouraging others to do the same. Their program, Anywhere in Israel, has now grown to include communities throughout the country, and provides hospitality to approximately 150 students each week.
Anywhere in Israel's purpose is to “bring out the beauty of living a full Jewish life in the land of Israel, through the warmth of a Shabbos atmosphere around the Shabbos table,” its founders explain. Students can choose from a variety of communities from the Golan to Be'er Sheva, including Judea and Samaria towns that many students would not see otherwise. The program provides hospitality to both students who observe the Sabbath and those who do not.
Host families are recruited via a network of contacts who confirm that potential hosts observe Shabbat and are prepared to host students. While hundreds of families have volunteered, the group faces a serious shortage of hosts and would like to recruit many more in order to guarantee spots for another 100-200 students every Sabbath.
The program's coordinator, Rachel N, recruits two types of host families. The first type agrees to provide for students “from A to Z,” arranging all of their Shabbat meals and sleeping arrangements. Those families are entered into the Anywhere in Israel online database.
The second group of families are not in the database, and are contacted by Anywhere in Israel as the need arises. These families may not be able to host guests for the entire Sabbath, but provide what they can, such as a single meal or a place to sleep.
Anywhere in Israel's immediate goal is to expand its weekly hospitality program in order to provide a Sabbath experience for every students who asks. The group's medium and long-term goals include providing organized Sabbath programming on a regular basis and opening a similar network of hosts to work with Russian-speaking students.
Those interested in hosting students or finding Sabbath hospitality may do so on the Anywhere in Israel website.