By Juli Itzkovitz, Creative Director at Federation
As I walked through Tel Aviv this spring, traffic humming, Israeli flags waving in the wind, it dawned on me that I was walking through a modern city built on timeless Jewish values. This insight is where my journey of self-discovery began, on the Jewish Women’s Renaissance Project trip. Though JWRP has now been officially rebranded as Momentum, the goal is the same — to empower women to change the world by connecting with the deeply Jewish values that transform ourselves, our families, and our communities.
On Momentum I accepted the challenge of changing the world, realizing that in order to do that I needed to change myself. The amazing result was that during my time in Israel, I discovered a courage I never knew I had, and it became my superpower.
On this trip to Israel I found:
- Courage to travel to Israel with 40 women I had never met before. Courage to talk publicly about the amazing work Federation does in Yokneam. Courage to cry with others at Yad Vashem.
- I found the courage to touch the wall at the Kotel and accept the incredible energy I felt. I found the courage to stand and speak and become a bat mitzvah, an experience I never had as a child.
- I found the courage to intimately share my fears, hopes, dreams, challenges and victories with strangers who had become confidants and friends.
- I found the courage to let myself celebrate and embrace being Jewish and to accept my brand new feelings and appreciation of Israel.
- Courage to take on a leadership role; courage to stand up for values I hold dear; courage to be vulnerable and authentic and to lead a life based on integrity and core values.
- Since my return to my life as I know it, I have brought this newfound courage home to Atlanta. I now have the courage to accept and talk about where I have been and where I now need to be going; the courage to be quiet and listen; the courage to step out of my comfort zone
- I also found courage to abandon ideas that no longer serve me.
Thank you, Momentum for providing the momentum to grow and change.
