What a week, day, year…

GESHER AMBASSADOR PROGRAM: Immersive Week Summary by Violetta Varga

I had been looking forward to this opportunity for such a long time when we were informed that we could start getting ready for the Immersive Week.

We had been struggling with the same difficulties – pandemics – as everybody else for so long that it was such a great news that we finally got the opportunity for the Immersive Week of our mission. We had been looking forward to hearing this news as we had been preparing for it for more than an entire year.

We have been in the program for seven years now having been through different versions of it.

The current Gesher Ambassador Program is significantly different from the earlier model as it is the improved version of what we have been doing for this long time.

We have three components now.  

Component 1 – GAP CLUB

After a long and carefully prepared recruitment process we were able to choose our eleven Ambassadors from Grades 9,10 and 11. After handing in a written application, we had all the candidates interviewed in person. The committee consisting of the GAP Leaders, Violetta, Varga and Zsolt, Mártha choose the ones afterwards to make them become our Ambassadors.

Component 2 – SEMINAR SESSIONS (Pre-Immersive week, Post Immersive week)

Our newly chosen Ambassadors had to take part in a year-long seminar session, based on the syllabus provided by Alan Reinitz, the founder and CEO of SOS International Enriching Jewish Identities.

The sessions were based on the SOS International mission, goals and objectives which are:

• Next generation Jewish Identity
• Experiential Judaism values for 21^st century life
• Leadership skill development
• Jewish Community Service
• Jewish Community Renewal

In our sessions we had our Chief Rabbi, Istvan Darvas supporting us with resources from the Torah and Talmud. We are all very grateful for his knowledge and involvement in our seminar sessions.

Component 3 – IMMERSIVE WEEK

Another significant difference from what we did previously was to expand the program so that it included topic-based Workshops and Student Teaching.

Workshops
With tremendous thanks to our Beth Tfiloh Dahan Community School (BT) colleagues, we all greatly benefited from their excellently created and built-up workshops, specifically designed for the GAP Program and for our students. So special thanks to:

• Dr Schorr, Director of Education of the Beth Tfiloh Dahan Community School and Rabbi Wohlberg, Rabbi Emeritus and Dean of the School for their workshop on Jewish Peoplehood
• Dr Jill Aizenstein and Dr Neil Rubin for theirworkshop on Jewish Civil Rights, Civic Responsibility and Jewish Activism
• Eli Creeger, Caryn Lerman and Rochelle Sullivan for their workshop on School Culture and Wellness

Student Teaching
With special thanks to Scheiber Sándor Gimnázium (SSG) students we had a life-transformative experience due to their teaching in different grades at BT. They got an opportunity to teach in Grades 3,4,6 and 9. SSG students got a picture of all parts, including Elementary School, Middle School and High School. So special thanks to:

• Zsolt Mártha, SSG GAP Group Leader, Vice Principal of Scheiber Sandor Gimnazium, International Representative of SSG Student Teaching Program
• and our students:
• Amir Kádár, Grade 9
• Anna Margit, Grade 9
• Benedek Kálló, Grade 11
• Mózes Borbély, Grade11
• Dávid Szilágyi, Grade 10
• Illés Gergely, Grade 10
• Ilya Besedin, Grade 11
• Liza Kárpáti, Grade 9
• Petra Csengei, Grade 10
• Benedek Puporka, Grade 9
• Sámuel Ecsedi, Grade 11

Besides our academic experiences, we have also had amazing moments of

• volunteering
• making friends for life
• having fun
• enjoying every moment being here,

which I am not going to detail any further as our SSG Students have done so.

Last, but not least I would like to thank Everyone who has been supporting this program since the very beginning of our GAP mission.

With heartfelt thanks for all they have done to make our program a reality and for the many zoom meetings, we send special Hungarian hugs to:

• Eli Creeger, High School Director of Student Activities
• Devora Teichman, Administrative Assistant

Enormous special thanks to Rabbi Mordechai Soskil, Director of Judaic Studies for all his that he does for the spiritual experience that our students get the whole week.

Personally, I would like to say a special thank you to Robin, Chafitz, School Registrar, whose home hospitality has been the upper limits of kindness, warmth and welcome. With her I have never felt alone throughout my whole being here. She is like a mother to me. Without her support I would not be able to be what I am here. I love you, Robin. And Rob has made the most delicious dinner, but your oatmeal is the best!

Dr Renee Koplon, we are really grateful for having the opportunity to participate at your weekly meeting for the teachers. We were happy to see that both of our school are having the same issues to arrange, regarding either kids or having more teachers. Special thanks to your kind hospitality for having a very comfortable bed for me for my last night.

Dr Schorr, I cannot express in words how grateful I am to you. We all know that without you this program would never have happened.

The same gratitude to Alan Reinitz and Glynis Smith, SOS International Enriching Jewish Identities.  

Written by:

Violetta Varga
SSG GAP Group Leader
The Director of English Language Department, SSG
Communication Coordinator of International Relations, SSG