Mollie Sommer reflects on her journey during Tikvatenu 3: Volunteer & Solidarity Trip to Israel in March 2025. The first four days of our trip were spent staying in Rehovot, traveling in and out of the Gaza envelope visiting Kibbutz Holit, Ofakim, and Shuva Junction. To say it was incredible,...

Haley Lerner reflects on her journey during Tikvatenu 3: Volunteer & Solidarity Trip to Israel in March 2025. For as long as I can remember, whenever I hear the word Kibbutz, I picture a little boy, maybe four or five years old, playing in the dirt. He’s wearing shorts, a...

  January 15th, 2025 The Jewish Community Relations Council of Minnesota and the Dakotas (JCRC), Minneapolis Jewish Federation, and St. Paul Jewish Federation welcome deal to release many of the hostages cruelly held in Gaza by Hamas and other Palestinian terrorists for over 467 Days. This agreement also opens a path...

Jet-lagged and out of sorts, I was still processing my arrival to Israel as we set out towards Kibbutz Holit early this morning. This was after a dinner with representatives from Minneapolis' partnership city of Rehovot who shared with me how they have (and have not yet) processed 10/7 and...

Today was an unforgettable day.  As a first-time visitor to our homeland, my anticipation grew every day since I booked my flight several months ago.  For days, weeks, and months, friends and family would constantly ask me “Are you so excited? Do you have any idea what you’re in for? ...

Before October 7th, by far the biggest news of the year in Israel was judicial reform and broader societal issues. As the founding generation of Israel passed, the population of 2023 was confronting what it meant to be a Jewish religious state, a Jewish democratic state, and/or a combination of...

On February 18, a group of volunteers and staff from Minneapolis Jewish Federation embarked on a week-long volunteer and solidarity mission to Israel. Aaron Goldstein, a community member and one of the volunteers, recapped the first day…

On February 18, a group of volunteers and staff from Minneapolis Jewish Federation will embark on a week-long volunteer and solidarity mission to Israel. In anticipation of this journey…

Karen and Russ Rubin’s love of travel began when the Rubin family moved to Switzerland for Russ’ job. Now that their two daughters are grown and live on opposite coasts, traveling as a family is less frequent, and time together as a family is treasured more than ever…