Published Articles

Original Article Published on The Jerusalem Post

The story of Israel’s first Jewish-Arab tennis team at the Special Olympics

Four special Israeli athletes are true champions of tennis and coexistence. Two Israeli Jews and two Israeli Arabs represented Israel at the 2011 Special Olympics World Summer Games in Athens, Greece. This is the first time Israeli Arabs have been chosen to represent the country in the Olympics.

The four players, who competed in both singles and doubles tennis matches, joined 7,500 Special Olympics athletes from 185 countries, from all ability levels, in 21 Olympic-type sports. Since 1968, Special Olympics has offered more than 3.4 million children and adults with intellectual disabilities the opportunity to compete in sports events.

The story of the Israeli delegation and their road to Athens is inspiring and heartwarming. It shows how people with so-called disabilities often have amazing abilities.

Additionally, people with long histories of not getting along can come together around a common goal.

Elad Gevandschnaider, a 22 year old Israeli Jew from Be’er Sheva, is a volunteer with the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and trains at the Israel Tennis Center (ITC) in Beersheva. He won a silver medal at the European Championships in Poland a few months ago. He also has down syndrome. Athletes with intellectual disabilities receive free equipment and coaching at each of the 14 Israel Tennis Centers (ITC) throughout Israel. Gevandschnaider reports proudly, I will do everything to win. I want to be a champion.

Tamir Segal, a 34 year old Israeli Jew from the Golan Heights town of Katzrin, lives in Kiryat Shemona and practices daily at the ITC center there. He is the most experienced player on the team; he won the gold medal at the 2006 European Championships in Berlin and the bronze medal at the Olympic Games in 2007 in Shanghai.

Muhammad Kunbar, a 20 year old Israeli Arab from East Jerusalem and Jafar Tawil, a 20 year old Israeli Arab from Beit Safafa, owe much of their success to the dedication of a very special teacher. Mahmoud Qaraeen, a physical education teacher at the El Salam special education school in Beit Safafa, noticed that Kunbar and Tawil had excellent athletic skills. He encouraged them to train twice a week at the Israel Tennis Center in Jerusalem. They worked with many coaches and they competed in tournaments. They eventually began training at the Wingate Institute, Israel’s national center for physical education and sport.

Kunbar, Tawil, Gevandschnaide and Segal began playing together at the Wingate Institute’s training camp. Some may wonder how two Hebrew speakers and two Arabic speakers, all with special needs, would be able to communicate? “Communication has been one of the main challenges for these athletes, as their mental disabilities are at different levels, said Shaya Azar, director of the ITC in Ashkelon and coordinator of the Special Olympics tennis program. Tawil speaks Arabic, but he cannot read or write in Arabic and he does not speak Hebrew. Kunbar, who communicates on a higher level, often functions as a translator between Tawil and the coaches. Despite some communication difficulties and their cognitive challenges, the four athletes have a very special relationship. Segal notes, I’m good friends with Muhammad and Jafar and love them and love joking with them. Similarly, Tawil adds, I have a great relationship with Elad and Tamir. I love playing tennis and I hope to be a good player and to be among the world’s best. The men simply enjoy playing tennis.

In May, 44 players competed to represent Israel at the World Special Olympics event. The special foursome was chosen to represent Israel in Athens. “They are a great bunch of young men that enjoy every second they can spend on the court. They appreciate the (Israel Tennis) Center and they appreciate the coaches and the efforts of their school,” said Ilan Maman, the director of ITC-Jerusalem.

The Israel Tennis Centers have always prided themselves on their inclusion of athletes, regardless of religion, mother tongue or ability. They have a range of programs for people with developmental challenges such as autism, hearing impairments, ADHD and for children in wheelchairs. In addition, there is a link on the ITC website for, Arab Jewish Coexistence, noting that, We believe sport is a powerful tool for promoting tolerance, developing good, productive relationships and ultimately peaceful coexistence. According to Yoni Yair, Israeli Development Associate for Israel Children’s Centers (the American organization that supports ITC), Our coexistence programs teach kids how to respect one another, how to appreciate different beliefs and cultures, how to listen and how to just have fun on the court. We need to understand that we are human beings who can live together in a peaceful way. By coming together on the tennis court, I feel it’s a beautiful vehicle to achieve our dream of making a huge impact on the future of the kids. Step-by-step, things will change.

Many take great pride in the accomplishments of the Special Olympic tennis players and their medals at the Athens games. At press time, the Israeli doubles team of Elad and Muhammad and the other doubles team of Tamir and Jafar, each won bronze medals! They were also likely to be medal winners in singles.

However, the real victory for Israel’s tennis players is on the court of coexistence. As Azar wisely states, This shows that everyone is equal and sends a message of coexistence. It is important that both sides understand that there is room for cooperation, especially when such athletes are involved. You can build something with them and I’m sure that they are our best ambassadors. Indeed, these special athletes have a lot to teach Israel and the world.



Read more

Once upon a time, Jewish summer camp was a place for beautiful Shabbat and Havdalah services, s’mores around a campfire, Shabbat-o-grams, and letters from home. Camps nowadays are all of this and more! You will be hard-pressed to find a summer camp without at least one climbing tower, outdoor adventures which include rappelling and cave exploration, experts coming for several days to teach everything from a capella singing to basketball to pastry baking. At my camp, Camp Ramah in New England, campers even have the opportunity to learn from an artist experienced in duct tape art!

And all camps have found creative ways to incorporate technology in to their daily operation. I remember “purists” ten years ago objecting to our wiring the camp for the internet. Now, security enabled wifi access points allow our 40 Israeli delegation members, our 20 Eastern European kitchen workers, and the other 140 staff members to be in touch with family, friends and the outside world.

We successfully walk a fine line: we do not allow campers to bring IPhones and other electronic gadgets to camp, but we use technology to communicate with camp families and to simplify their lives. Families register online, they send emails to their children which get printed out and delivered daily to their bunks. The director sends out a weekly d’var torah and updates from camp—with a spotlight on several notable events of the week. Families daily check the photo gallery to see pictures of their children—nicely arranged by division, and parents are informed of daily highlights by going to the camp blog. Today alone features news of the Amitzim (special needs program) talent show, the Machon etgar (15 year olds hiking and canoeing trip), the camp wide Six Flags trip, and the 14 year olds production in Hebrew of Alice in Wonderland.

Yes, technology in a Jewish summer camp has its limitations: rain storms bring the internet down, families come to expect more communication than we can offer, and more transparency leads to the occasional comment about: why is my son not smiling? (and the follow up, “doesn’t’ he have any friends?) Why is my daughter not in the bunk photo? (she was in the bathroom) or Why is my son (in the special needs camping program) putting tefillin on his left arm?—he is a lefty!

I’d like to think that Jewish summer camps will continue to find creative ways to use technology. Perhaps we will build on the already wonderful use nowadays–posting photos and blog entries, to the provision of year round on-line learning, video chatting on Jewish topics, discussion boards for parents, and more! Technology is empowering and has the potential to play a important role—year round—in the lives of Jewish summer camps.

Read more

Read about the recent Ramah Galil Bike Ride, posted online at the CT Jewish Ledger website.

It’s not too late to sign up for the Tour De Shuls, this Sunday in West Hartford. Come ride 20, 35 or 50 miles, or walk/run//bike 5 or 10 km. The Connecticut Valley Federation of Jewish Men’s Clubs is organizing the ride. All profits go to the Tikvah Program at Camp Ramah in New England.

Read more


Bike Ride (www.ramahbikeride.org).  Three riders have deep connections to the Nutmeg State:  Dr. Cliff Nerwen of Riverdale, N.Y. grew up in West Hartford;  Rami Schwartzer, a recent graduate of Columbia University/Jewish Theological Seminary (JTS) List College Joint Program and incoming JTS rabbinical student, is a West Hartford resident.  And the author has been a long-time resident of the New Haven Jewish community.  The following is an excerpt from a diary I kept of this once-in-a-lifetime ride:

SUNDAY, MAY 15
I am standing in the El Al line at JFK airport, behind hundreds of Birthright Israel participants, waiting for my purple suitcase to return from being x-rayed.  The packed plane is a welcome sign that no one is scared away by Nakba Day, commemorated today in Israel.  The tall, dark glasses-wearing Israeli security guard looks at me and says in a serious voice, “I know you!”  I look confused and he says, “Amir-Camp Ramah New England 2004 — I was on the mishlochot (Israeli delegation) and worked in Nivonim (the oldest division).”  I knew we were in for a safe flight.

MONDAY, MAY 16
We land and claim our luggage.  The only person to have a problem clearing customs, ironically, is a Manhattan assistant DA.  They suspect his bike is new and force him to open his bike box and take his bike apart.  We are soon on the road to Kibbutz Ein Gev, where we arrive in time for a delicious dinner and sunrise over the Kinneret, the Sea of Galilee which we will ride all the way around in exactly seven days.  We meet Oded and his staff from Gal Galil, a tour company specializing in Israel bike rides, receive our ride shirts and two water bottles.  This is starting to feel real!

TUESDAY, MAY 17
Riders who brought bikes assemble them; the rest of us are fitted for our rental bikes. Our name signs are attached to the front and to our helmets.  Some members take their bikes on a short spin around the kibbutz. Shawna, a rider from Montreal, befriends Eric, a kibbutz member, who offers to take our group on a tour of the 200 acres of banana plants.  Who knew plants only give fruit once, and that the blue plastic bags often seen covering bananas in Israel are there to protect the fruit from the huge leaves smacking against and bruising the fruit?!  We left for a tour of Gamla, sometimes called “The Masada of the North,” and saw vultures soaring above. Then, the ride became a little more real with our first “evening briefing,” a nightly activity required for all riders, where we reviewed course routes and elevation maps

WEDNESDAY, MAY 18
The bus brought us to Katzrin in the Golan Heights where we had a beautiful pre-ride ceremony, consisting of psalms, songs, and readings in the ancient Katzrin synagogue.  Then, on our bikes!   The first hills heading south to Hispin and Ramat Hamagshimim reminded us Connecticut riders that the familiar rolling hills and even the elevations of Woodbridge, Bethany and West Hartford, and our training rides in Central Park and up the Palisades of New Jersey were no match for the Golan Heights!  What makes a ride like this so special — other than the great cause — special needs camping programs, and the camaraderie — 40 riders — ages 13 through 70 — is riding through Jewish and Israeli history.  Today, we ascended to Tel Saki, famous site of a battle during the 1973 Yom Kippur War, where the Nahal Brigade and the armored Brigades 7 and 188 fought against a whole Syrian division!
We ended the day with a steep ascent to Har Bental, overlooking Israel’s tallest mountain, Mount Hermon, which some brave riders would climb tomorrow.

THURSDAY, MAY 19
Perhaps the most interesting day of all—biking through the Druse village of Mass’adeh, a climb up the Hermon by some brave riders.  The first to make the climb to the top was Matthew Goldstein, the youngest rider who had celebrated his bar mitzvah at Camp Ramah in the Berkshires five days before!  All riders descended from Mount  Hermon (cool seeing Israel’s one and only ski area, in the summer!), ate an amazing soup and sandwich lunch at Hurshat Tal Park, and biked on to Agamon Hahulah Reserve—famous for the half billion birds which pass through each year on their way from Russia to Africa.  A particular highlight of our night at Kibbutz Kfar Giladi was the tour of the sleek, an underground arsenal of guns and ammunition.

FRIDAY, MAY 20
Imagine riding along the Lebanese border for so many miles—just days after tensions in the area related to Nakbah Day. You wouldn’t know it — except for the fact the road we just traveled on was closed when we attempted to get back on, following our tour of the Galil Mountain Winery.  Oh, well, what’s a few extra mountainous kilometers for the sake of our safety!  The beautiful descent through an Arab village, followed by a huge climb to our beautiful C Hacienda Forestview Hotel in Maalot was worth it!  The riders spent Shabbat together—swimming, playing miniature golf and ping pong, and eating like royalty.  All riders had the opportunity to hear from Tikvah Program founders, Herb and Barbara Greenberg, founders and directors for 29 years of this visionary program for campers with special needs.  I felt honored to be on a panel with my mentors, who moved to Israel 12 years ago. The riders truly felt connected to the cause they were raising money for—and they were treated to stories about campers with special needs–from forty plus years ago!

Saturday May 21 – Monday May 23:
After Shabbat, the riders were joined by members of the singing group, The Shuk, for a Lag B’Omer kumsitz (marshmallows, bon fire, and great singing).  Sunday two part ride—Upper Galil to Lower Galil (with lunch and a tour of Kibbutz Hannaton), and mountain biking on the Israel Trail, starting in Tiberias, offered breathtaking views of the Kineret, the Sea of Galilee.  On Monday, we set out from Tiberias and rode around the entire Kineret. About half the group did the optional hour and a half climb up the Golan Heights for a final look over the breathtaking Galilee and Golan Heights — which we had just proudly experienced by bike over the past five days.  We covered approximately 250 miles, and climbed 15,000 feet.  We leave with the wise words of Ramah Israel director Dr. Joe Freedman in our ears;  “Israel is a smorgasbord — you can’t have everything at once, so you have to keep coming back!”  See you soon, Israel!

(Source: http://www.jewishledger.com)

Read more