A Light Unto the Nations

Kol Isha Women's AZ Trip '24
Kol Isha Women's AZ Trip '24

Kol Isha CohortKol Isha is the OFJCC’s intensive women’s leadership program. Over the course of a year, a small group of local women come together to build community, participate in Jewish learning and create local social impact projects. The 2023–2024 cohort began meeting in early October with a focus on the global refugee crisis and had planned to go on a trip to learn and volunteer at the US/Mexico borders with the Arizona Jews for Justice sometime in the early part of 2024.

 

The group was preparing for the trip when the events of October 7th traumatized global Jewry. The cohort was grieving for Israel and dealing with very real antisemitism in our schools and in our cities. The participants started to question whether they would have the strength and capacity to focus on immigrants when so many in our own communities were suffering. Facing this uncertainty, participant Linor Eylon, reached out to her son Adam, who serves in the IDF. Without hesitation, he said, “Now more than ever, we must be a light unto the nations. We must show up for others and stand proud of who we are as Jews and what we stand for.” Inspired by his words, the women pursued the Jewish value of Tikkun Olam, or Repair the World and continued with the trip as planned.

Thus on March 27, 2024, twelve dynamic Jewish women, led by the incomparable Tova Birnbaum and Luba Palant, headed to Phoenix, AZ to volunteer with Arizona Jews for Justice.
Kol Isha Cohort

“We had no idea what to expect on this trip.”

We should not have worried, Rabbi Shmuly and Eddie were more than welcoming and excited for the opportunity to share their inspiring work. One project they have undertaken is volunteering at the Mount of Olives Lutheran Church in Phoenix, which welcomes buses of asylum seekers coming out of detention centers at the border. Before the church opened its space, ICE would drop off busloads of immigrants on the streets. These individuals neither knew where they were nor understood what they should do. Now, with the help of the Arizona Jews for Justice, the church opens its doors to asylum seekers and tells them where they are, provides them with a meal, a cell phone, a shower and one change of clothing. Each person released from detention must have a sponsor and a place to stay somewhere in the United States. Volunteers at the church help call their sponsors and arrange flights for them, usually paid for by the sponsors, and then take them to the airport or bus station.

The 14 of us from the OFJCC helped in any way we could. We prepared and served meals, sorted and handed out clothing, bought medicine and organized a medical supply closet, connected phones to wifi, made phone calls to sponsors,  helped download boarding passes, helped charge ankle monitors and used a lot of Google Translate. We were also fortunate to have, in our group, Jackie Miodownik Aisenberg. Originally from Argentina and a fluent Spanish speaker—as well as a physician—her presence was such a gift to the people who passed through the church.

Kol IshaSome of the people we encountered included:

  • A man from India who spoke very little English who was heading to Mobile, Alabama, and his friend Azim from Bangladesh who was picked up by a friend who lived an hour away from the church. When Azim’s friend arrived despite being a very statured man, he broke down sobbing with relief.
  • A 23-year-old woman named Alina from Siberia, Russia, who was on her way to Los Angeles to live with her father’s friend. Alina traveled through multiple countries, walked from Mexico to the border and spent over 2 months in detention. She was thrilled to meet Luba who spoke to her in Russian and helped her navigate the airport over the phone the next day. Seeing her face after she washed her hair for the first time in weeks was priceless.
  • A young man arrived at the church and reunited with his mother for the first time in five years. A heartbreaking and heartwarming scene that none of us will forget.
  • A tiny ten-day-old baby who is a United States citizen was born under detention but in the hospital. Kol Isha
  • We learned that women are given ankle monitors not because they are considered dangerous or untrustworthy, but because they want to be sure the women are not being trafficked. Julie Arnheim had to cut the jeans off a young woman who wanted to shower but couldn’t get them off because of the ankle monitor.

That same woman would not let us hold her baby while she showered. We must have offered twenty times, but she couldn’t bear to separate from her for even a few minutes.Kol Isha

  • A young girl of seven or eight searching the moderately stocked clothing closet to find something cute to wear but leaving not exactly happy. It broke our hearts that we couldn’t provide her with something new and pretty so she could feel some sense of normalcy.

The people we met and the stories we heard from the asylum seekers will haunt us forever. In the words of Rabbi Shmuly, “It can be overwhelming and disheartening to see so much pain and struggle in the world. But as Jews, if we can save or help one person, we are changing their world. And we should take comfort in doing that one thing for that one person—showing our humanity and knowing we made a difference.”

 

 

—Lori Krolik and Karen Orzechoeski, 2023–2024 Kol Isha Cohort

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Oshman Family JCC

Written by Oshman Family JCC

The OFJCC is a Jewish Community Center and a vibrant neighborhood in the heart of Silicon Valley where all are welcome. The OFJCC provides a common ground for Jewish institutions, other local groups, organizations and individuals to work, learn and play together for the betterment of the whole community. For more information, visit www.paloaltojcc.org.

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