Like so many concerned Jews and supporters of Israel, Lynn Schusterman watched in horror as the war in Lebanon unfolded in the late summer of 2006. She began to search for ways to assist Israelis living in the besieged north of the country. With the guidance of the program staff of the Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Foundation, Lynn decided to send 550 young Jewish leaders from around the world to Israel to repair damages from the war and to offer solidarity and emotional support to the residents of the north.
In a program coordinated by the Center for Leadership Initiatives, in late 2006 and early 2007 the
participants spent ten days painting bomb shelters, preparing burned forests for replanting, meeting with community members, donating blood and engaging in other community service projects. The multi-faceted program also featured Jewish service learning and cultural, educational and social programming. This unique service program demonstrated in an unprecedented fashion that acting on the Jewish value of service (tikkun olam) can galvanize and link young Jews from North America, Israel and elsewhere, regardless of their political, religious or cultural backgrounds.With more than 3,000 applicants for the 550 available spots on the trip, the program participants spent their entire trip in Israel's north, not touring but working in Jewish, Arab and Druze towns that had been damaged in the attacks of the summer of 2006. A complex collaboration of organizations, including the Schusterman Foundation - Israel, Hillel International; the Israel on Campus Coalition, and the Jewish Coalition for Service, developed and launched the program within months of the completion of the war.
Among the accomplishments of Leading Up North were the following:
- 550 participants, including 350 students and 200 young adults
- 13 buses, each with a specially tailored program
- 10 communities in northern Israel served
- 17 countries represented
- 1,200 service placements
- 3,500 hours of service invested
- 200 bomb shelters painted
- 800 gallons of paint
- 1,000 paint brushes
- 125 acres of forest prepared
- 200 Magen David Adom blood donations
- 300 Gift of Life bone marrow tests
- 2,000 hotel room nights occupied
- 7,000 attendees at Festival BeShekel
CLI strives to share program reports and evaluations with colleagues to support communal learning.
The LUN Report tells the story of Leading Up North and offers an inside perspective for others considering launching similar ventures. Download Leading Up North - A Case Study on Service in Israel (April 2007).
Read an external evaluator's assessment of Leading Up North. Download the evaluation executive summary here.
