$$News and Reports$$

Aug. 10, 2016
 

Moishe House, in collaboration with BGU, opened Moishe House Beer-Sheva, its third house in Israel, last month.

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Pictured above: Moishe House Beer-Sheva Residents


Moishe House Beer-Sheva’s four dynamic residents – all between the ages of 23 and 27, and three of whom are students at BGU – are creating a grassroots community for their friends, neighbors and students. The residents will host at least 60 programs, which will ultimately reach 300 unique participants, over the course of their first year.

Known for their community activism, with more than 50 percent of BGU’s undergraduate students volunteering in the community, BGU students saw the need for authentic communal content tailored to millennials. Through the support of American Associates, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (AABGU), Moishe House Beer-Sheva will provide accessible, home-based programs that engage Jewish young adults in a way that feels natural and relevant.

The connection between Moishe House and AABGU was made through a mutual board member, Jaynie Schultz, of Dallas, Texas. “I feel so privileged to be involved with two outstanding organizations. The opportunity presented by this joint initiative will make the outcome exponential,” said Schultz, who has been a supporter of Moishe House since its inception. A graduate of AABGU’s Zin Fellows Leadership Program, she joined AABGU’s board of directors in October 2015.

Following the Moishe House model, the residents of Moishe House Beer-Sheva will open their home five to six times each month for their community, and, in return, will receive a partial rent stipend and a programming budget, along with training and staff support.

“My hope is that our Moishe House will be a home for everybody that comes to visit us in our community whether you are from Israel or abroad,” says Moishe House resident Tal Megera. “I want our home to be a welcoming place that can show young people cool and new sides of Judaism.”

Lloyd Goldman, president of AABGU, is also a long-time supporter of Moishe House. He recently visited Beer-Sheva House and presented the residents with a cookbook written by his sister, Katja Goldman. In addition to the generous support of the Joyce and Irving Goldman Family Foundation, one cookbook has been given to every Moishe House. Goldman is deputy chair of BGU’s Board of Governors.

Alejandro Okret, Moishe House’s chief global officer, adds, “We want to continue saying ‘yes’ to helping meet the demand for peer-led, home-based programming for young adults and their Jewish communities in the state of Israel. We look forward to helping support the creation of new houses in locations outside of North America in the foreseeable future.”
 

Photo Credit: Courtesy of AABGU

American Associates, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev President Lloyd Goldman, who is also a Moishe House supporter, presents a cookbook to Moishe House Beer-Sheva residents and BGU students Tal Megera and Hilla Bitton. (Photo Credit: Courtesy of AABGU.)