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Camel rides in the desert set the mood
during the 1998 teen mission to Israel.

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LISA FEIN

Special to the Jewish News

S

eeing the sunrise from the
top of Masada, floating on
the Dead Sea and praying
at the Western Wall are
examples of what 275 high school
students will experience this sum-
mer on Michigan's third teen mis-
sion to Israel.
The 4 112-week trip's intent is "is
to provide an affordable, educa-
tionally based Israel experience for
teens, as well as an increased sense
of positive Jewish identity and
commitment," said Trudy Weiss,,
who coordinates youth missions for
the Jewish Federation of
Metropolitan Detroit.

3/24

2000

102

The trip will cost $6,400 per
teen, but a Federation subsidy
drops the cost to $3,495 — up
$500 from 1998. "Because of the
community commitment to get
young people to Israel, over
$40,000 is allocated to scholarships
for the participants, based on
financial need," said 'Weiss, who
works from the Michigan Israel
Connection office in the Max M.
Fisher Federation Building in
Bloomfield Township.
Federation officials attributed
this year's rise in price to higher
fuel costs and the fact that this
tourist year will be one of Israel's
busiest, driving up other costs.
The 2000 teen mission, running
from June 28 to July 31, is the

biggest yet. The first in 1996 drew
238 teens. Two years later, 216
teens took part. "A lot of this year's
participants are siblings of past
trips," Weiss said.
Participating congregations
include Adat Shalom Synagogue,
Congregations Beth Shalom,
Shaarey Zedek and Shir Tikvah,
and Temples Beth El, Emanu-El,
Israel, Kol Ami and Shir
Shalom. Teens who are unaffili-
ated and teens from other areas
— Ann Arbor, Grand Rapids
and Windsor — also will partici-
pate.
Israeli youth from the
Partnership 2000 region of the
central Galilee will join their
Michigan counterparts on the

tour buses to serve as educators and
guides. The partnership is a social,
cultural, educational and economic
exchange between Michigan Jewry
and the central Galilee. Each of the
eight buses also will have a Jewish
educator or spiritual leader.
The 45 Israeli teens will visit

Planning for the biggest teen
mission yet has begun with
local learning experiences
about Israel.