Israel for Youth Foundation and United Jewish Education Board farewell their largest Year 10 group to Israel

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The United Jewish Education Board (UJEB), together with the support of the Israel for Youth Foundation, Inc. (I4Y), are delighted to farewell today 40 students on UJEB’s 5-week Year 10 Israel trip – their largest group of students on this trip.

Ready to go

This year’s UJEB Israel trip is the first since 2019, given COVID cancellations. The 40 students travelling this year are nearly double the number of participants compared with 2019. This increase has been driven by the grants and financial assistance provided by I4Y.

The UJEB students this year represent 14 non-Jewish schools across Victoria, South Australia and Western Australia. They join 123 students from NSW, ACT and Queensland on NSW’s Board of Jewish Education “Nesiah” Israel trip.

Following their return, the UJEB students living in Melbourne will participate in a year-long active formal program of community involvement, lectures and social experiences designed by UJEB to strengthen these students’ bonds to their local communities.

Israel for Youth Foundation co-founder and President, Ronn Bechler, said: “We are thrilled to see so many participants attend UJEB’s Year 10 Israel trip this year. With the support of a small and committed group of donors, the Israel for Youth Foundation has exceeded its goals for this year, and we are looking forward to even more kids attending UJEB’s Year 10 Israel trip next year. We already have over 60 expressing interest, including 9 from Perth. Prior participants have become more active members in the Jewish community, and we look forward to seeing this grow over future years.”

UJEB Executive Principal Itzik Sztokman said: “The Year 10 Israel trip is a key program for us and something many of the UJEB kids look forward to. We are thrilled at the number of kids participating in this year’s trip and are grateful for the financial support the Israel for Youth Foundation has provided to so many families to make the trip more affordable. To see all these excited kids about to board a plane to Israel, make new friends and be more engaged with their Jewish identity is extremely rewarding.”