The Aliav Foundation has begun confronting the issue of Jewish continuity in an innovative manner, melding Jewish activism with social activity – and they have picked Jerusalem to be the heart of this endeavor.
Aliav’s first event took place Thursday night at the promenade in Jerusalem’s Armon HaNetziv neighborhood, overlooking the Old City and the Temple Mount. Close to 250 young professionals came together for an evening of wine and Jazz – with 100% of the proceeds being donated to One Family, an organization offering assistance to victims of Arab terror.
Aliav, short for ‘Aliyah Bet’ (literally the “Second Aliyah”), was the alias given to Israel’s first female Mossad agent, Ruth Kluger. The young women behind the initiative sought to honor Kluger’s bravery – not only for endangering her life on behalf of Israel during her service in the Mossad – but her arrival in Israel as a single woman, seeking to follow her dreams and be a part of Jewish history as it unfolds.
“We want to dedicate tonight to this beautiful country we have come home to, and to our always being an active part of it all,” said one organizer, Chana Lieber – who gave a toast to cries of L’Chaim under the full moon of a balmy Jerusalem night.
A representative of One Family thanked those present, encouraging them to stay involved in “the holy work of helping rebuild those lives shattered by terrorism.” Since the wine was donated by Efrat Wineries – the oldest winery in Israel – and the cheese, pastries and other refreshments were donated by vendors from the Machane Yehuda Shuk (market), all proceeds from the evening went directly to victims of terror attacks and their families.
The organizers behind Aliav – Shani Falik, Joelle Tollinsky, Chana Lieber, Craig Levy, Bryan Choritz and Rivka Flaumenhaft – have many more events planned for the future that they hope will help meld “social interaction with social action” in Tollinsky’s words.
They hope that such events will not only benefit those who attend, but that word will spread to the exile that Aliyah need not always wait until after one has met their mate and married. “I talk to many friends back in America who truly want to come live here,” said Ari Abramowitz – a new immigrant from Texas, “but for some reason they are under the impression that there is a shortage of people to marry here, or that Aliyah is somehow more difficult as a single person. Both assumptions are not only false, but lead to people selling short their dreams and ending up living a life of wistful regret.”
Not all attendees were singles and the crowd was quite diverse. Abramowitz pointed out the bilingual chatter, as veteran Israelis and new olim crossed paths and exchanged phone numbers. “The ingathering of the exiles is still going on – only now we are not running away from Jew-haters but toward our homeland – to build it,” said Abramowitz. “There is an Aliyah revolution afoot, and nights like tonight are a part of that.”
The Aliav Foundation can be contacted at: AliavFoundation@yahoo.com
Aliav’s first event took place Thursday night at the promenade in Jerusalem’s Armon HaNetziv neighborhood, overlooking the Old City and the Temple Mount. Close to 250 young professionals came together for an evening of wine and Jazz – with 100% of the proceeds being donated to One Family, an organization offering assistance to victims of Arab terror.
Aliav, short for ‘Aliyah Bet’ (literally the “Second Aliyah”), was the alias given to Israel’s first female Mossad agent, Ruth Kluger. The young women behind the initiative sought to honor Kluger’s bravery – not only for endangering her life on behalf of Israel during her service in the Mossad – but her arrival in Israel as a single woman, seeking to follow her dreams and be a part of Jewish history as it unfolds.
“We want to dedicate tonight to this beautiful country we have come home to, and to our always being an active part of it all,” said one organizer, Chana Lieber – who gave a toast to cries of L’Chaim under the full moon of a balmy Jerusalem night.
A representative of One Family thanked those present, encouraging them to stay involved in “the holy work of helping rebuild those lives shattered by terrorism.” Since the wine was donated by Efrat Wineries – the oldest winery in Israel – and the cheese, pastries and other refreshments were donated by vendors from the Machane Yehuda Shuk (market), all proceeds from the evening went directly to victims of terror attacks and their families.
The organizers behind Aliav – Shani Falik, Joelle Tollinsky, Chana Lieber, Craig Levy, Bryan Choritz and Rivka Flaumenhaft – have many more events planned for the future that they hope will help meld “social interaction with social action” in Tollinsky’s words.
They hope that such events will not only benefit those who attend, but that word will spread to the exile that Aliyah need not always wait until after one has met their mate and married. “I talk to many friends back in America who truly want to come live here,” said Ari Abramowitz – a new immigrant from Texas, “but for some reason they are under the impression that there is a shortage of people to marry here, or that Aliyah is somehow more difficult as a single person. Both assumptions are not only false, but lead to people selling short their dreams and ending up living a life of wistful regret.”
Not all attendees were singles and the crowd was quite diverse. Abramowitz pointed out the bilingual chatter, as veteran Israelis and new olim crossed paths and exchanged phone numbers. “The ingathering of the exiles is still going on – only now we are not running away from Jew-haters but toward our homeland – to build it,” said Abramowitz. “There is an Aliyah revolution afoot, and nights like tonight are a part of that.”
The Aliav Foundation can be contacted at: AliavFoundation@yahoo.com