Celebrate your connection to Israel!

Plant something new in your garden, in a planter to put on the window sill or anywhere that will always remind you of your little piece of Israel that you have planted at home.

Decorate the planter with images of Israel, the Israeli flag, anything that will put that IsraelLove smile on your face as you
 GROW YOUR LOVE FOR ISRAEL FOREVER™!

Make your Israel at Home™ planting a part of our Israel Forever
Virtual Israel Forest™!
Send your photo to info@israelforeverfoundation.org and join our global virtual forest of trees, showcasing the world of love for Israel and our commitment to her continued growth and prosperity.

View our complete Israel Forever Tu B’Shevat Plant Israel at Home™ Program Guide, and organize a Tastes of Tu B’Shevat™ event in your community!

For more information or to tell us about your Plant Israel at Home™ event,
contact Elana Heideman at elanayael@israelforeverfoundation.org

And what a response we got! Friends, followers, and members of The Israel Forever Foundation along with Virtual Citizens of Israel from across the globe, young and old alike, joined us as we spread our light of love to the young men and women who have emigrated to Israel to defend our citizens and to fight for our peace and security.

We know how hard it is to be far away from family especially during the holidays. Chanukah in particular is a chag when families come together to kindle the lights of memory that recall the days when Jews were forbidden to practice free as Jews. Our very existence as a nation was threatened, but today we have Israel as a beacon of light amidst the darkness, a place where every Jew can live free and fight for freedom for all the peoples of the world who come to settle in our ancient homeland. Just as the miracle of the oil lasted 8 days, we hope this video montage will bring light to the hearts of all Lone Soldiers for the duration of Chanukah to remind you that we are all family and we are all united with you in our love of Israel.

The expressions of hope, pride and admiration that have been sent from Argentina, Holland, Denmark, New Jersey, Maryland, Israel, Canada and the Phillipines (just to name a few) emerge from a passionate commitment to the future of Israel. We are honored to offer such a wonderful display to brighten up this year’s Chanukah celebration. Enjoy the video clip with songs of Chanukah and images that are sure to put a smile on your face and fill your heart with joy!

Happy Chanukah to the Lone Soldiers of Israel!

We want to thank everyone who sent in their creative Chanukah cards and videos. You are an important part of the continued effort of Israel Forever and we are grateful for your involvement, interaction and inspiration. Your contributions of blogposts, comments, ideas, and of course donations show us that we are indeed responding to an important need in the world today – a place to come together to share the kaleidoscope of what is good about Israel.

Our initiative to unite Virtual Citizens of Israel ensures that everyone in the world can be a part of the ongoing project that is Israel, that we can all share in our commitment to her growth and prosperity. Join this fast-growing community today! We look forward to continuing to build opportunities for your interaction with Israel in as many ways as possible and that The Israel Forever Foundation will be a place where people from all faiths, races, political and spiritual affiliations can become united in their understanding, love, respect and pride for the Jewish State.

Chag Chanukat Sameach!

Elana Yael Heideman, PhD
Director

These young men and women have moved to Israel independently to dedicate years of their life to defending the Jewish State and the Jewish People. We are working in collaboration with the Lone Soldier Center to thank them for their commitment. We would like to invite YOU to send them your holiday wishes, put a smile on their face and remind them how much they are appreciated for their motivation, courage and strength.

In Israel, Chanukah is not celebrated with the giving of gifts. Latkes (potato pancakes) and sufganiyot (jelly-filled doughnuts) are the sweet and oily treats enjoyed by everyone, as we sit amidst the glow of the burning lights and enjoy the singing of the traditional songs.

At this special time of year, let’s show these brave soldiers that we recognize the challenges of being so far away from their family and friends.
YOU CAN CREATE A CHANUKAH CARD OR BRIEF VIDEO SHARING YOUR PERSONAL MESSAGE OF THANKS AND HOLIDAY CHEER!
This is a great way to teach your kids love for Israel Forever, too! Combine your creativity with a heartfelt message and send them to us by SUNDAY DECEMBER 11, 2011.

Please send your entry by email to info@israelforeverfoundation.org or load it directly onto our Facebook page. We will compile all submissions into a single video that will be distributed throughout the community of Lone Soldiers through the Lone Soldier Center, a wonderful organization seeking to provide support for the basic needs of these individuals – a Shabbat meal, a bed to sleep in during their weekends off from the army, a place to hang out, mentoring services and more. You can read all about their wonderful activities on their website and donate to their incredible cause. They are a part of keeping ISRAEL FOREVER!

Gustave Dore "Rachel"

Luigi Mayer Sepulchre of Rachel 1803

Postcard of Rachel's Tomb 1910

During one of my visits to Israel a few years ago I went to Rachel’s tomb. My family and I rode in a taxi as close as the Israeli driver was allowed to get to the area. Then we asked a bus full of Israeli citizen’s from Afula, a city in the northern part of the country, if we could ride along with them. They spoke no English and we spoke only minimal Hebrew. Yet they understood that, like them, we treasured the opportunity to visit the gravesite of one of the most important women in biblical and Israeli history. They graciously welcomed us on board their already-crowded bus and squeezed closer together to make room for us to sit down. It took about a minute or two before we were chatting away like old friends, using broken English, broken Hebrew and lots of hand gestures. They offered us water, cookies, and candies. I remember the short bus ride to and from as well as I remember actually standing inside the tomb praying. It was all part of the same deeply meaningful experience. All of us together, a large group of Jews from an Israeli city and a family of four from The United States of America sharing in the timeless tradition of praying to the patriarchs and matriarchs of our people for good health, peace, and joy.

Students praying at Rachel's Tomb, 1930s

It is written “Rachel cries for her children, she refuses to be comforted for her children who are absent… So says Hashem, cease your crying for there is a reward for your actions, by the word of G-d they will return from enemy lands, and there is hope for your end, as is the word of G-d, and your children will return to their borders” Yirmiyahu (Jeremiah) 31:11. Standing in the tomb I was surrounded by crowds of women. Many of them were crying as they prayed. A chill went through to the very core of my being as I realized that I was taking my place along a line of Jewish women dating back four thousand years. My eyes began to well with tears as I looked at the many children dancing around the tomb. They too will grow up and continue to visit Rachel’s tomb.

Women's Prayer at Rachel's Tomb

Rachel personifies the cry for the spiritual and physical return of all Jews. Rachel is she who refuses to be comforted until the ingathering of her children is realized. Just as Rachel’s tomb stands as a testament to her life, Jewish people from all over the world coming to visit her tomb is a testament that Israel is Forever.

Virtual Citizen of Israel William Daroff!

Although we were reading the exchange of messages on Twitter and Facebook, we could not even begin to contend with the idea that weather would cause any problems. There were too many other unknowns for The Israel Forever Foundation. This was going to be our first official foray into the Jewish communal world in North America! Each member of our team had attended GA’s before, but this time it was different.This time, we were all personally invested in launching our foundation’s mission, our success at networking and setting out to fulfill our dream of uniting the Jewish People through LOVE for ISRAEL.

We were taking our place in line among countless Jewish people who have come before us. Throughout history Am Yisrael has been focused on connecting with and strengthening the land of Israel ever since we gathered at Mount Sinai over four thousand years ago. With the destruction of the Second Temple and the exile of the Jewish people into far away lands, they didn’t abandon the constant yearning to return to Israel. In fact, throughout two thousand years of exile the ache in our hearts never lulled and we didn’t spend much time worrying about how religious a person was or what political affiliation they identified with. The overwhelming consensus was that Israel was the Jewish Homeland. It was no accident that the term “homeland” was used. Referring to a place as “home” evokes all kinds of images and feelings of love, support, connection, a place where you can be yourself and reach your fullest potential.

The Israel Forever Foundation was created to go forward by going back. We want to help foster the Jewish connection to Israel by enabling people to return to a simpler time. Before all the labeling and categorizing that has set in in recent years; back to a time when Jewish people everywhere were united in our vocal and unwavering love and support of Israel. We took our passion to this years’ General Assembly and began sharing our plan to Grow The Love for Israel with as many people as we could. The response was incredible! Over and over again attendees signed up to become Virtual Citizens of Israel, just one of our exciting initiatives to show the people of Israel that people all around the world are connected to them and support them.

YLove registers as a Virtual Citizen of Israel!

IFF Team Heidi Daroff, Phyllis Heideman and Ariana Heideman with YLove

Israel has not had a day of peace since her rebirth in 1948. The Israel Forever Foundation will not sit idly by while our people and our land are under attack. Yet we have chosen a distinctively different road than political advocacy or hasbara related to the ins and outs of delegitimization or demonization of Israel and the Jewish People. Our goals to foster positive experiences and encounters with Israel, her people and all the dimensions of her meaningful existence are guided by the foundation of love for Israel that the whole IFF team shares and desires to revive throughout the world.

Loving Israel!

Everyone who has already joined as a Virtual Citizen of Israel is a part of this amazing effort, and we thank you for being a part of this amazing effort. You are making a difference by showing your support, by declaring your commitment to Israel, and by encouraging others to do so as well. We are the fastest growing Jewish community! We are excited to continue connecting with all the new friends that we made at the GA and look forward to attending many more such events in the coming years. We may have only just begun but it is our combined efforts that will ensure that Israel is indeed Forever!

It’s Friday morning here on the East Coast of the United States. I have about a million and ten things to do to prepare for Shabbat and my trip to Denver, Colorado tomorrow night for the Jewish Federations of North America General Assembly. I had to stop all of that for a moment and “apologize” if I kept any of you awake last night! Did you hear the cheering and the cries of joy? Did you wonder what all of the commotion was about? Did you figure that somewhere in the world something good was happening? If you did, you were right!

Last night, November 3, 2011 at about 10:44 pm The Israel Forever Foundation reached 1,000 followers on Twitter! Just one day after we celebrated the 94th anniversary of the Balfour Declaration, the original birth certificate of the State of Israel, when British Foreign Secretary Arthur Balfour’s declaration was issued in the form of a letter to a leader of the British Jewish community! That letter had stated: 

Balfour's Reception in Tel Aviv (1925)

There are a few reasons why I value this milestone so personally:
1) Growing our followers on a steady basis proves that people all around the world care about Israel and want to connect with the people, the land, and the history on a consistent basis.

2) As we were climbing toward 1,000 many of our existing followers tweeted about our goal of reaching 1,000 before our arrival in Denver. It was so inspiring that so many organizations and individuals support our efforts. We truly appreciate them and look forward to years of partnering on behalf of our beloved Israel.

3) I was on the phone throughout the evening with our Co-Founder/Co-Chair Phyllis Heideman. We were watching the numbers rise and we could feel the strength of our people all around us. It culminated in a teenager from Spain becoming our 1,000th follower. Not only did she click “follow” but she wished us Simcha, Bracha, and Hatzlacha, ( Hebrew for joy, blessings, and success) in our endeavors! Phyllis, her daughter Ariana, a member of our International Leadership Council, and I were reading it at the same time. I said to them, ” this is why Israel is forever! If we have teens who speak this way, it speaks volumes about the character of those who support Israel!” Then we each shed a tear of thanks.

I was so pleased to email the good news to our Director, Elana. Being as Israel is six hours ahead of us she was sleeping soundly in the land we are all so devoted to. But I am thankful my “dance of joy” was felt by so many others who are seeing the value of an organization in pursuit of unifying the passion and love for the many dimensions of Israel that emphasizes the value of her existence and isn’t daunted by the media in our efforts to increase that love worldwide. While I may have kept some of you awake as the numbers neared the milestone of 1000, I sincerely thank you for your support and look forward to years of sharing in our mutual love of all that makes Israel so special.

Now that we have reached 1000 Twitter followers, and our Facebook page receives more likes each day as well, we hope to soon achieve our next goal of reaching 1941 Virtual Citizens of Israel in honor of Gilad Shalit’s return home after 1941 days in captivity. As I prepare for the amazing opportunity to meet with fellow passionate Jewish leaders at the GA in just a couple of days, I wish for everyone a Shabbat Shalom. Please watch for live updates from Denver on Sunday and Monday and, in the meantime, help us by retweeting, liking, Facebooking, and loving ISRAEL FOREVER!

Thank you all again for your support and involvement. Feel the Love, Spread the Love – ISRAEL IS INDEED FOREVER!

Eventually, as I grew older, I began to travel to Europe to see family – to Asia as an exchange student, to Africa on a class trip. I remember seeing churches, cathedrals, castles, mosques and landmarks which appear on glossy post cards. Although I was filled with awe at the new experiences that travel brings, I soon became complacent as I realized that everything I saw held less meaning to me than it did for my friends. I guessed the only possible reason could be because I’m Jewish. Don’t get me wrong – I loved seeing Saint Paul’s Cathedral, the old churches in Alhambra, Spain and the crusader castles throughout Europe. But something seemed to be missing. I felt that I did not share a bond to many places in Europe and I was definitely a foreigner in Latin America, Africa and Asia where I could only marvel at the ancient wonders that other people’s ancestors created. I longed to know my own roots and historical heritage as a Jew.

Growing up, I remember going to Hebrew School and taking a make believe trip to Israel as a young boy. It sounds weird, but I still remember the fun as a four year old sitting in a row of chairs pretending that I was on an El Al airliner traveling to Tel Aviv.

Taking the imaginary El Al Journey to Israel

Throughout high school, college and law school, I traveled to many places but somehow it never seemed like the right time to go to Israel. While the Intifadas raged in the Holy Land, I celebrated my Bar Mitzvah and grew up afraid to visit the ancestral homeland of the Jewish people. While attending university, I met Benjamin Netanyahu in Washington, DC. I distinctly remember him telling me that traveling to Israel was not just a special travel experience but was my right as a member of the Jewish diaspora. Nonetheless, I never took the Birthright trip and time went on…

It’s funny how things turn out because I had the good fortune in my line of work to work on projects that brought me closer to people who shared my passion for Israel. One day I gathered all my courage to ask if I could travel on business to Israel and assist in completing various tasks around the country. I remember when I heard the answer that I could indeed travel to Israel, I was excited not only that I was going to Israel but that I was going to bring my knowledge and skills to work on a project in Israel that would make the experience even more important and meaningful. I remember calling my good friend Mendel who was a Rabbinical student in New York and relating the exciting news. He said to me “you are going home.”

As the weeks progressed towards my departure date I became more and more excited. I packed my bag with my Tallit (the Jewish prayer shawl) and my kippot (Jewish skullcap) which I brought along solely because I wanted to have them present in Jerusalem with me. After boarding my late night flight to Tel Aviv, I only remember bits and pieces because I was so excited. The most poignant image in my mind was the early morning decent into Tel Aviv from the Mediterranean. I remember seeing the tall buildings, the highways and the glowing lights shining like diamonds throughout the land. I marveled at what my people had built from the barren desert landscape. I remember landing in Israel and taking my first breaths of the air. It was the sweetest smell I have encountered. I took my first steps on the land and was so proud to return to my ancestral homeland. All those years of traveling and looking for something that I could never find… I had finally come home.

Welcome to Israel

After 10 days of repentance, asking forgiveness and considering what the next year will hold, Yom Kippur arrives at the end of this week. Interestingly, this year it coincides with Shabbat. In some ways these two holidays are similar and in some ways they are very very different. In the Torah we are commanded to observe both of these days and each has an accompanying set of rules and rituals. Shabbat and Yom Kippur each have a prescribed day and time period set aside for them. I believe each has played a vital role in sustaining the children of Israel for over 4,000 years.

Jews come together for the Sabbath of Sabbaths. Poland, 1800s.

Yom Kippur is something else entirely, yet I believe it is just as important. Yom Kippur has such a seriousness and severity to it that it only comes around once a year versus once a week. Instead of filling our tummies with delicious home cooking, we forgo all food in order to focus more on our prayers and our requests for a new year laden with blessings. Instead of spending the day socializing as on Shabbat, this Saturday most Jewish people will engage in deep reflection and prayer.

I’m fascinated by the ability of the Jewish people to have kept each of these days so close to their original intention. Thousands of years have gone by since our forefathers and mothers first stood at Mount Sinai and learned about these special days. In our infinite wisdom, year after year, no matter where the Jews lived or what else was going on in the world, Shabbat and Yom Kippur were revered. It is because of all the Jewish people who came before me and kept these commandments alive that I can stand in synagogue this Saturday and join my people in asking for a new year filled with good health and happiness.

I feel a deep sense of gratitude to the Jews who lived twenty generations, eight generations, or even two generations ago. It is because of their belief in an eternal covenant with God that we Jews today can enter synagogues all over the world and recite our prayers. All those who came before us knew what we know now, Israel is forever because of our commitment, as the Children of Israel, to the Land of Israel, and to the idea of Israel as a unifying entity for all of us scattered across the globe. What makes Israel unique is our ability to embrace our differences of opinion, our differences of faith, and our differences of observance and still know that Israel will remain forever because of the love, passion, and hope that we all share.

I wish you all G’mar Hatima Tova – that you may all be sealed in the Book of Life. May all of Israel be inscribed for a year of health, joy, and peace!

Was Rosh Hashanah just days away? How was this possible? This past summer was delightful as I was able to spend a lot of time with my husband and daughters in Israel. My girls and I went to bed late most nights, slept even later the next morning and meandered through most days in a wistful and relaxed fashion (while my husband was busy working). There was no homework, no after school activities, no appointments, or deadlines. After a busy jam packed school year this was such a relief!

Last September had started off with a bang. Right after Labor Day (the traditional end of summer day off) the fall holidays began and it was a seemingly never ending cycle of menu planning, shopping, cooking, synagogue, and repeat. Everybody I came across was remarking that this year would be easier. There was almost a month between Labor Day, back to school, and the holidays. We all had it in our heads that we’d have some breathing space but as I glanced at the dates in front of me I couldn’t help but think, “Oh No! I forgot to breath!!” Then I did what Jewish women have been doing for centuries, I shifted into high gear as there wasn’t a moment to waste! I began searching through my cookbooks and came across last Rosh Hashanah’s menu and shopping list! Although, I decided to make some changes to the menu it was a relief to have the first step or two in the process completed. After polishing up my proposed meals I went to my local grocery and began purchasing the food items that won’t spoil.

Somewhere between the bag of brown rice and the frozen broccoli it hit me, preparing for the fall chagim (Jewish holiday’s) is so much more than food prep. In my heart I know that it is really about self reflection. How have I spent the last year of my life? Did I use my time wisely? Did I engage in the things that make me happy? Was I a good mother to my children? Did I set a good example for them?

My girls dressed up for Shabbat in Jerusalem

As I write this my older daughter is doing her Hebrew homework and my younger daughter is singing the Aleph-Bet song! Dinner is cooking in the oven and I’ve added some fresh spices that I purchased at the Shuk in Jerusalem. When I washed my hair this morning I used my shampoo that was manufactured and purchased in Israel. I surround my family with all things Israel because I know that it is the eternal Jewish Homeland.

While there is always room for self-improvement, I believe that time and energy spent growing our connection to Israel is indeed time well spent. To that end I have begun working with the Israel Forever Foundation as their Director of Social Media Communications. I’m thrilled and honored to join an organization that is dedicated to furthering the Jewish love of and connection to our Homeland. I look forward to engaging with you and learning what it is that connects you to Israel.

So as the book of life opens I pray for a year of peace for all of us. A year to further commit ourselves to the never ending bond between God and the Jewish people. A bond that began in Israel and will continue to blossom from there forever.

Shana Tova u’Metuka!
Heidi Krizer Daroff