Kevin Sherman

Traveling to Israel on the NFTY Exodus trip last summer was definitely one of the best summers of my life. Learning about Judaism and making new friends enabled this trip to be one that I will never forget. While in Israel, I spent a lot of time going to historic sites where I learned about the history of Judaism and Israel. By learning about the Jewish people's history, I felt a stronger connection to my Jewish heritage than I had ever felt before in my life. Even though I know I don't remember everything I saw, the experiences and feelings I felt while there are still with me.

My trip to Israel also was important to me in ways other than the knowledge that I gained. While there I became friendly with other kids my age from all over the Midwest and whether or not I would make friends was the part of the trip that scared me the most before I left. Even though I was friendly with some people who were going with me, I realized there would be plenty of people whom I didn't know. My nervousness about this lasted just a few days. By the end of the trip, I realized I had made more new friends than I ever expected. Looking back on it, I realize that there was no way that I could have spent 5 1/2 weeks with the same people and not have become friendly with every single one of them. My trip to Israel last summer was some of the best 5 1/2 weeks that I ever had.

Kevin Sherman is a senior at Sycamore High School. He is a student at the Cincinnati Reform Jewish High School and a congregant at Wise Temple. He is also a member of BBYO.

Home	The Library	About Us	Bookstore	Contact Info	Feedback	Glossary

Israel & the States		Links	News	Publications	Search	Sponsorship