There is no single reason to travel to Israel, and there is no single type of Jewish National Fund-USA traveler.
From young people beginning their leadership journeys to longtime Israel supporters observing the organization’s transformative work strengthening communities in Israel’s North and South, each traveler may arrive at a different point in their life. Yet they all share an opportunity to become part of Israel’s story.
For Adam Zeelens, traveling to Israel with Jewish National Fund-USA was a way to seek and find joy.
“We were coming together collectively, not just for tikkun olam (repairing the world), but to generate this joy and ruach (spirit).”
Zeelens, who serves as vice president of the organization’s JNFuture New York Board and is a member of the Arava Task Force and Strategic Planning Committee, experienced that joy firsthand on two trips this year: The JNFuture Leadership Institute Mission (JLIM) and the Circles of Impact Mega Mission.
On JLIM — a trip tailored to the organization’s subset of young philanthropists ages 22 to 40 — his sense of purpose came through in moments that were as joyful as they were meaningful. One day, Zeelens and a group of young adults spent hours preparing meals for soldiers, chopping vegetables, cooking eggs, slicing bread and assembling sandwiches as Israeli music blasted in the background.
He ended the day with his white shoes soaked in tomato juice, which he continues to wear with pride.
Adam Zeelens making food for Israel’s soldiers. (Courtesy of Adam Zeelens)
Yet while JLIM connected him with donors closer to his age, he was the youngest participant on the Mega Mission. It was there that he understood the importance of forming relationships with supporters from different generations and learning from their experiences.
“It is so important that we unite and connect intergenerationally,” Zeelens said. “There is so much that we can learn from each other as donors, as advocates for Jewish National Fund-USA, as current or future leaders of this organization.”
For Zeelens, travel strengthened a leadership journey already underway. But for Lisa Kartzman and Janet Pavloff of Long Island, New York, it opened the door to an entirely new relationship with the organization.
After the tragedy of Oct. 7, Pavloff began searching for an opportunity to volunteer in Israel. Jewish National Fund-USA stood out to her for its ability to mobilize people and resources, and she soon joined one of the organization’s Volunteer in Israel missions.
“I feel like I really needed to do this,” Pavloff recalled thinking. “And it was life changing.”
Two years later, Kartzman joined Pavloff on another volunteer mission. They visited the Galilee Culinary Institute by JNF, explored the Akko Visitor Center and traveled South to the Eshkol Region, where they saw the organization’s initiatives helping communities rebuild and strengthen their resilience.
“Not only do you learn about all these different things that the organization is involved in but you also meet the people and see what they’re doing,” said Kartzman. “It’s not only informational and it’s not only educational. It’s enriching.”
Janet Pavloff (left) and Lisa Kartzman (right) volunteering at a citrus farm in Israel’s North. (Courtesy of Lisa Kartzman)
That enrichment followed the pair home. Pavloff and Kartzman’s relationship with Jewish National Fund-USA now includes philanthropy, volunteering, committee involvement and friendships with fellow supporters. It also influences how they think about their legacy.
“We talk a lot now about legacy for ourselves,” Kartzman said. “We want to make sure that our money goes to the right place.”
While Kartzman and Pavloff discovered through travel a new way to engage with Israel, Arielle Orazio knew the country well before she ever traveled there with Jewish National Fund-USA. Her experience shows that even for repeat visitors, there can still be another side of Israel to discover.
Orazio first visited Israel in high school, then returned during college for a three-month volunteer trip and later for a tennis program. This year, she traveled on a volunteer mission alongside two close friends with whom she had visited Israel 10 years earlier.
But this time, Orazio was looking for more than another visit.
“I wanted to really help Israel, and donating money just wasn’t enough,” she said.
Arielle Orazio at the Western Wall in Jerusalem. (Ellie Levy)
The mission gave her the opportunity to take the next step. Orazio packed care boxes for soldiers, volunteered at agricultural sites and met Israelis in the communities where they live and work. The trip moved between moments of joy and reflection, from picking grapefruits, which she described as “especially magical,” to confronting the profound loss of Oct. 7.
Even after multiple previous trips, returning after so many years gave her something she had been missing.
“It felt like filling a void,” Orazio said. “It had been a long time since I last went, and I was happy to be there again.”
Different generations, different relationships with Israel and different reasons for getting on the plane brought Zeelens, Kartzman, Pavloff and Orazio to the same realization: The value of traveling with Jewish National Fund-USA is not simply traveling to Israel, but understanding its communities and why supporting the land and people of Israel matters.
“Anyone who has any interest needs to visit Israel, because you won’t truly understand the impact without being there on the ground,” Zeelens said. “Go! Sign up now, go online, book your tickets, because you will never, ever regret traveling to Israel with Jewish National Fund-USA.”
For more information about travel opportunities to Israel, visit jnf.org/travel, email [email protected] or call 877-563-8687.
This is a paid post. (JEWISH REVIEW)’s editorial team had no role in its production.
