Congratulations to the eight Birthright Israel NEXT participants who were awarded NEXT Seder grants for their creative hosting ideas! We hope you have a great experience hosting your first Seders.

The lucky winners...

Josh Albert - Naples, FL

“I am still energized from my Taglit trip to Israel, and this would give me an opportunity to turn my other friends on to the excitement of the experience, and the importance of supporting the State of Israel... [I want] to teach about Israel in a fun way that would incorporate many aspects of Israel's language, geography, and sense of community.  I am hoping to develop a strong sense of Jewish identity--connecting to Israel in a very modern sense.  I want my guests to know what it is like to be in Israel now, and that our tradition still is much a part of what Israel is.  I also have a way of getting everyone to sing, so I feel that this seder could be very spiritual.”

Arielle Angel - Spartanburg, SC

“I want to start discussion about real issues of social and environmental justice, discussing both challenges and solutions, and to eat a satisfying vegetarian meal of symbolic foods, representing different cultures and parts of the world… Passover is about community, which is why we sit around the table and read in turn. Therefore, I thought it was only fitting [to ask] seder participants to contribute to the text and imaging in the seder, as well as the menu.   This pastiche approach also speaks to a general theme of inclusion, openness and awareness. I believe wholly in thinking globally while acting locally. I believe each of the seder participants, through their particular interests, travel experiences, etc. will bring a broader awareness of the world at large to our seder.”

Hayley Currier - Berkeley, CA

“My goal in creating a Seder is to make Judaism and Jewish traditions relevant and real for my friends and me… I have a joyous and rich culture, and I want to be able to share that with the people who are important to me. I want to make this a teaching Seder, so that everyone understands what we are doing, where the traditions come from, and most of all, why they are important to us today. Passover is all about injustice--the injustice that the Jewish people suffered, the inequalities of the time. It is a powerful story, and one that resonates today.”

David Hedlund - St. Louis, MO

“Although I am new to St. Louis, I have met many other new jews in the area.  I believe one of the best ways to get involved, meet people, and learn about your new home is to get give back to the community.  If we can create an idea for a new program, and get people who are new to the area to create it, I believe we will build a base of volunteers who will continue to give back…. As part of the dinner time conversation, we are planning on discussing ways to help the St. Louis Jewish Community.  The hope would not just be to foster conversation, but to end the night having created an event that can be enacted in the community.”

Dakota Johnston - Burlington, VT

“Raw Passover is centered around the experience of not only retelling but reliving the exodus through raw living food. We all know how important food is at the Passover seder. It's on the seder plate in front of us and we can smell the matzoballs cooking in the kitchen. But were our ancestors eating Matzoball soup on their way of of Egypt? NO! They didn't even have time to let their bread rise! With the growth of environmentalism and food consciousness taking place among students and young people alike Raw Passover will provide… a unique and fun experience and to encourage a conversation about raw or living, but more importantly it will serve as a jumping off point to talk about food justice and communal responsibility for ourselves and our environment.”

Ilana Mantell - Seattle, WA

“While the Haggadah begins and ends with references to Israel (i.e. next year in Jerusalem!), the core texts, and the central part of the Seder (the telling of the Exodus from Egypt) actually don't mention Israel at all.  I would like for my guests to think about this absence, and to think about what Israel means to both themselves and the Jewish people… Can the Jewish people be free without Israel?  I hope that it will lead to a rich and nuanced discussion about the relationship between American Jews and Israel, the history of the State of Israel, and the meaning of Jewish identity and peoplehood.”

Marissa Rosenblum - Brooklyn, NY

“I would like to primarily focus on the idea of community responsibility - the Jewish tradition of caring for others during my Seder. The LGBT Jewish community can find a good deal of hope both in those who have fought for LGBT civil rights as well as in the story of our ancestors' enslavement in Egypt. During the Seder, we will celebrate the many freedoms we have obtained, and explore those freedoms not yet within our grasp. It is our responsibility as Jews to reach out to those that need our help. As our fight against discriminatory laws continues throughout the nation, the LGBT community needs help. The story of Passover teaches us that while it might be uncomfortable or taxing, we must be ready to sacrifice personal comfort in an effort to save a fellow Jew. Nothing is too great a sacrifice, so what is our responsibility to each other as LGBT people and as Jews?”

Lisa Sobel - San Jose, CA

“[My seder will] focus on the theme of tikkun olam- providing for others, through giving both food and full-sized toiletries to a local shelter.  We will be using the Santa Cruz Haggadah for the first time to deepen the seder experience for all of our guests, most of whom have never been to a vegetarian seder before.  We will explore what it means to come out of bondage as a people and the responsibility we have to lift others out of poverty into dignity. “

Henry Simons - Santa Cruz, CA

“I plan on incorporating the idea of community responsibility into my Seder. Specifically, I want to focus on where the food we eat comes from, and how each of us can make better choices about how we spend our money on food. I want my guests to understand how exploitative the food industry is, and how they can make better choices. I also want them to see how easy it is to cook from the farmers market. I want my guests to make the connection that slavery still exists in our community even if people are being paid a wage.”

Looking for additional Passover resources? Visit HarvesttoHarvest.org now!

Photo by Robert Couse-Baker licensed under Creative Commons.