Zionism

Original article published in the Jerusalem Post

“If I stayed, there would have been too many temptations, so we decided to come here. It has been a fantastic roller-coaster experience!”

When Jonathan Balkin traveled from South Africa to Israel in 1971 to participate in Hadracha, a course that included participants from Betar, Bnei Akiva and Habonim, he had no idea he would meet his future wife on the plane, make aliyah, spend his entire professional medical career at Shaare Zedek Medical Center in Jerusalem and live in Alon Shvut, surrounded by supportive and loving community members.

On the plane from South Africa to Israel, Balkin became friends with Terri, a female Habonim participant from the town of Stellenbosch near Cape Town. After two years of writing letters (“There was no Zoom or even TV in South Africa, and calls were very expensive”), Balkin reports, “The friendship blossomed into a meaningful relationship.” Jonathan and Terri eventually married and made aliyah in January, 1977, the day after he “qualified” (completed his studies) in medicine. Despite coming from a prominent medical family where both his father and grandfather were doctors – and a likely promising career in South Africa – Balkin knew it was the right time to make aliyah. 

Balkin concedes, “In South Africa at that time, it was paradise if you were white. I personally came from a family where my grandfather was one of the premier physicians in Johannesburg and had taught all of my teachers. He was an active communal person, and was very involved in setting up and running the hevra kadisha [Jewish burial society], which was really the tzedakah of the community. I had a fantastic career open to me there but I wanted to come to Israel!”

Terri was less certain. “We had discussed coming to Israel in our letters, and sorted out a lot,” notes Balkin, acknowledging that Terri was less certain in those days about coming to Israel. “If you asked her in those days, she would say she didn’t want to come. But having come, she is eternally grateful.” 

Dr. Balkin adds thoughtfully, “If I stayed, there would have been too many temptations, so we decided to come here. It has been a fantastic roller-coaster experience!”

An Israeli flag [Ilustrative] (credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM/THE JERUSALEM POST)

Balkin’s family of origin was always committed to Israel and Zionism. “I was encouraged to be a Zionist, probably almost from birth. My grandmother was a member of the Women’s Zionist League in South Africa, she was in WIZO (Women’s International Zionist Organization) and came to Palestine in 1935 as a WIZO delegate. She came by boat! It took about six weeks just to get to Palestine at that time, and back. So I was brought up with a very Zionistic influence.” 

Balkin was active in Bnei Akiva while growing up in Johannesburg. “I became religious as a result. The first Shabbat I ever kept was in Bnei Akiva. I realized that Shabbat can be kept in a modern world.” He adds, “Bnei Akiva had a tremendous influence upon me and upon my outlook, and I’d already decided during my studies that I wanted to make my life in Israel.” His wife was affiliated with Habonim growing up. 

Prior to coming to Israel and Kibbutz Rosh Tzurim in January 1977, the Balkins and others had set up a garin (small group) of professionals. “We called it ‘Garin Snoopy.’ We were naïve and innocent. They were a traditional kibbutz where you worked in the lul [chicken coop] or nagaria [carpentry shop]. They had no concept of what a professional is. After a year, we realized that, unfortunately, it was not for us.” Things might have worked out differently had they made aliyah years later. “Ten or 15 years later, kibbutzim woke up and realized they couldn’t survive without professionals.” 

After a year on Kibbutz Rosh Tzurim, where their first child was born, the Balkins moved in 1978 to Alon Shvut and Balkin started his medical internship. “I was fortunate to do cardiology. My mentor was the late Prof. Monty Zion, also from South Africa.” Dr. Zion, who died in 2016 at age 91, was chief of cardiology at Shaare Zedek and a clinical professor at the Hebrew University. “He was an old-style cardiologist with a tremendous understanding of the physical examination as well as being open to new ideas which were happening at the time, especially in cardiology.” 

Balkin admired Zion’s commitment to traditional medical practices as well as his openness to new ideas. “When we started the department of cardiology in 1978 or ’79, there were lots of new things happening, and he was open to that, while at the same time, to continue teaching in a traditional fashion with an emphasis on hands-on, history and examination and understanding the patient.” 

Balkin has followed in his mentor’s footsteps and is now respected by others for his distinguished cardiology career. He served as director of Shaare Zedek’s Intensive Coronary Care Unit, which is responsible for accurate diagnosis and initial acute care of cardiac patients, and for actively working to prevent coronary damage in his patients.

Balkin has seen the hospital grow from being housed in its original 1904 building (“the physical conditions were awful until 1980”) to its current building. “It has been an unbelievable change, offering fantastic impetus for development.” 

He raves about his nurse colleagues and about working in a religious hospital. “The nurses really have dedication and love for caring for people.” He adds, “Coming to work in a religious hospital was a real change. The atmosphere at Shaare Zedek was totally different from anything I experienced before. The modesty and behavior were very different from what I experienced in South Africa. This was an amazing thing.” 

Balkin is similarly pleased with the caliber of doctors he works with – and with their extraordinary training. “It is amazing to see what has happened in Israel over the last 45 years – in medicine in general and in cardiology in particular. In the ’70s and ’80s, they were sending their best guys to the best places in the US for fellowships. Almost all heads of all departments are Israeli-born and spent time at the best institutions in the US. Israel is now at a world-class standard in almost all fields. It has been a wonderful experience to have been part of that. I’ve had a fantastic career here in Israel.”

BALKIN ACKNOWLEDGES that his family’s early years in Israel were “quite tough.” They had no close family in Israel to help with child care or with other situations requiring support – no easy task with his busy medical schedule and Terri working as a physiotherapist. He reports, “The Alon Shvut community is amazing,” and credits them with helping out in many crucial ways. “When my wife was on bed rest many years ago for two or three months, I came home from work and found food on the table, laundry done and the place cleaned – by people I had never met. That’s when I realized this community is wonderful and it is a real privilege to be part of it.” 

The Balkins are proud parents of four adult children who all live in Israel and are “all frum [observant], in very different ways.” One daughter, a biologist, lives nearby in Alon Shvut. One son is a teacher, one son is an actor and another is a teacher turned medical student. Balkin recounts the story of his soon-to-be-a-doctor-son with obvious pride, given this will make four generations of Balkins in medicine. “His wife said he should be a doctor, and he is almost done with his studies.” 

While the Balkins always spoke with their children in English – and are trying hard to make sure their grandchildren understand and speak English – they are proud of how hard they worked to master Hebrew. “I was determined to speak Hebrew. I broke my teeth and am still breaking my teeth 40 years later. People at work laugh but I was determined to write notes in Hebrew, speak to patients in Hebrew and make presentations in Hebrew. I still make mistakes but people appreciate the effort. You can’t really be part of life without Hebrew. It is part of being in Israel. I think it is a good thing for us.”

The Balkins truly love living in Israel and experiencing all that Israel has to offer. “Israel is a land of olim. And the people I’ve had the privileged to meet – Holocaust survivors, people from North African countries, the Soviet Union, people who have come with nothing and built a life for themselves – make this place such a great country. People just accept you.” 

Balkin acknowledges that many immigrants had difficulties mastering Hebrew and this prevented them from working in their fields – despite excellent educations in their home countries. “Then you see the second and third generation and how they have changed. It is just wonderful.”


Jonathan BalkinFrom Johannesburg, South Africa to Kibbutz Rosh Tzurim, 1977, to Alon Shvut, 1978

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Original Article in the Jerusalem Post

As the bus rolls up to the army base, A., one of the participants on the first ever Amazing Israel: Ramah Tikvah trip, begins to cry.

“No, there are soldiers here and they’ll have guns,” she moans. “No, no, no, no.”

Staff member Liz Offen speaks quietly and calmly.

“I know this is difficult for you,” she tells A. “We’re here for you. I know you can do this.”

A., holding hands with a friend, cautiously gets off the bus. At first she won’t even enter the large warehouse where special needs Israeli soldiers are folding army uniforms. She sits down outside, her friend with her, but she has stopped crying.

The participants on this Birthright trip, most of whom have attended the Tikvah program at different Ramah camps in the US, have a wide range of disabilities, both physical and emotional. They have come to the Bilu army base in Rehovot, outside Tel Aviv, to meet Israeli soldiers who also have disabilities and who are part of the Special in Uniform project.

The project takes more than 300 young Israelis with significant disabilities and trains them to do simple jobs in the army. It starts when the participants are still in school, which they attend until age 21. They can then volunteer for the army, and, if found suitable, can be inducted. 

The Bilu army base is a logistical base for the Paratroopers Brigade. Today, the students are folding army uniforms and tying them together in stacks of five. They come one day a week as part of their school program.

“The goal is to integrate them into Israeli society,” said Tiran Attia, a retired lieutenant-colonel, who runs the program. “It is good for them, but it is also good for the regular soldiers. It teaches them to become more compassionate.

The army runs a separate program called Ro’im Rahok (Seeing Far), which integrates young high-functioning adults with autism in Israeli intelligence units.

The young uniform folders carry tables outside so that the Birthright participants can help with the folding. A few participate, but most just watch.

The Birthright participants enjoy putting on Israeli army uniform shirts and hats. One young man proudly says that his father served in the army and he is happy to be visiting an army base.

This is the first time that Birthright Israel has partnered with Tikvah of Camp Ramah. Tikvah is a program for campers with special needs at each of the Ramah camps. The Camp Ramah spirit infuses this trip, which includes daily tefillot, or morning prayers, as well as a spirited version of “Rise and Shine” complete with hand gestures.

Howard Blas, the director of the National Ramah Tikvah Network, and one of the organizers of the special needs trip, says they made some changes to the traditional Birthright itinerary, while still hitting up the major sites in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, the Golan Heights, Masada and the Dead Sea.

For example, the group did visit the Yad Vashem Holocaust Museum in Jerusalem, but kept to a few of the smaller exhibits, rather than the main museum, which can take several hours to go through and is difficult to exit once you begin.

“We did a lot of things that are very multi-sensory like chocolate making, a jeep ride in the Golan and tree planting,” he said. “We also tried to do as many things as possible with animals because they love animals.”

Birthright has so far brought 600,000 Jews on free 10-day trips to Israel, including 2,000 adults with special needs.

Birthright CEO Gidi Marks says it is committed to bringing every young Jew who wants to visit Israel on a trip.

“OFFERING SPECIAL needs trips fits in with our broad mission of enabling each and every young Jew around the world, regardless of their circumstances, to take part in a once in a lifetime trip to Israel and connect with their Jewish heritage and identity,” he said. “These trips include all the hallmarks of the usual Birthright Israel experience: heritage sites, Israeli peers and countless special moments allowing them to connect with Israel and the Jewish heritage. Additional staffing and educational content customizations are made when and where necessary.”

For the parents of these young adults, it was a chance for their kids to be just like their neuro-typical siblings.

“I don’t think he would get an opportunity like this any other way,” Aron Wolf, whose son Danny has cerebral palsy and limited verbal ability, said. “I was skeptical that it would come through but it did. As far as I know, this is the first time that somebody with Danny’s disabilities has been included in any Birthright trip.”

Birthright Israel funded a caretaker for Danny, as well. His parents, like the parents of all the young adults on the trip, were thrilled to see the photos posted on Facebook each day. They also checked in with the caretaker frequently by phone.

“It sounds corny but he has the same birthright as any other young adult who is Jewish to experience Israel independently without his parents,” Danny’s mother, Michelle Wolf, said.

This is the first time that Danny has been so far from home. While he attends Camp Ramah in California, Michelle says that she is just a short flight away. She says she was concerned about sending Danny so far away alone.

“The idea of him being so far away from me was difficult,” she said. “I would have never even considered it if he hadn’t spent all of those summers at Camp Ramah.”

Tour guide Doron Kornbluth specially requested to guide this Birthright group. While most Israeli tour guides compete to stuff in as many sites and as much content as possible, Kornbluth said he had to take the participants’ disabilities into account.

“YOUR EXPECTATIONS have to be completely different,” he said. “A tour guide who is really invested wants to start early, end late, pack in a lot of information, teach a lot of history and that’s just not doable for this group. You cannot do as much at all.”

Another challenge is the range of disabilities of the participants. While all of them, except Danny, are able to walk, and most are able to speak clearly, a few are higher functioning.

Rachel Tracosas, 22, from Madison, Wisconsin, has high-functioning autism.

“It’s been an amazing experience to connect with my roots here in Israel,” she said. “I loved going donkey riding and going to the Kotel, which is what my brother did when he did Birthright last summer.”

The participants seemed to connect deeply with each other. Tracosas fed Danny at a lunch stop when the participants were given a budget and could choose what they wanted from a kosher food court in a local mall. Even that small independent step was exciting for them. They looked at all possible choices and discussed them before making their final decision.

Michelle Wolf said Danny’s caretaker told her that he is popular and that the participants all wanted to push his stroller. During lunch, several of the girls gathered around him, feeding him and smoothing his hair.

And every morning, when Danny managed to pull himself onto the bus by himself, his new friends gave him a spontaneous round of applause

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