Dear Kelly and Ilanit,
My name is Cami Kaye-I am actually very good friends with Jonah and Elana-and I’m part of icnext cohort 5. We all would like to thank the federation for organizing our trip to Havat Hashomer today, it was absolutely amazing. First we spoke with the head of training/curriculum and learned all about the basics and background of Havat Hashomer. Then we were split into two groups of nine and got to sit down with commanders, who told us about how they ended up there and some information about what it’s like to be a commander, allowing questions as we went along. My group even got to speak to one of the soldiers, who told us how he ended up there, his opinions on life there and his ambitions for the rest of his army career.
I felt very inspired when I heard that, even though 1/4 of them do not make it to the next step of the army, 3/4 of those troubled boys with criminal backgrounds got the opportunity to turn themselves around and make a better life for themselves while also defending their country. It is this sort of thing that really makes me feel hopeful for the future of not only Israel, but the entire world.
I think it is very important that the Federation put money towards things like this because it educates today’s youth and strengthens our relationship with Israel. I definitely think that our visit to Havat Hashomer moved each of us in one way or another and we would once again like to thank you for giving us this opportunity.
Sincerely,
Cami and icnext Cohort 5