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Indelible IMPACT
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BBYO national program in Washington
brings teens new real-life experiences.
6
Matthew Fealk and Jessica Lusky, both of West Bloomfield, and Ilissa
Chasnick of Farmington Hills
Jessica Lusky
I Teen2Teen Writer
S
ervice, advocacy and leader-
ship. On BBYO's IMPACT:
D.C. summer experience 2014,
many teens from around the U.S. and
Canada had the opportunity to learn
about current issues, voice their opinions
and help out the community while cre-
ating lifelong friendships and enjoying
what most of us would consider the best
12 days of our lives.
My experience in D.C. was absolutely
incredible, and I cannot think of any
other opportunity even slightly similar to
this one that I could possibly be offered
again in my lifetime. This program was
similar to the other two IMPACT pro-
grams offered through BBYO because of
the service and leadership chances we
were given, but very different from the
other two locations, Boston and Chicago,
because of the advocacy and sightseeing
opportunities.
Unlike the other locations, being
stationed at the University of Maryland
Hillel provided us with even more
incredible experiences, such as seeing
the Capitol and the White House, being
able to lobby with our state groups and
exploring the unique sites near the heart
of D.C.
Mornings usually began with break-
fast at the Hillel followed by volunteer
work at our service site or taking a bus
to the site we were going to explore that
day. The service site choices included
helping out at the Wider Circle furniture
warehouse and packaging food at differ-
ent food banks. I was fortunate enough
to move around and get to volunteer at
both service sites, which gave me the
opportunity to gain multiple perspec-
tives.
As a group, we also all gained a new
viewpoint when we visited MacPherson
Square. There we were encouraged to
get to know a homeless citizen and then
give that person our bagged lunch rather
than just handing them the food and
walking away without communicat-
ing. We got to hear all of their different
views about being homeless in D.C.,
rather than the cities they traveled from
and just being homeless in general. We
also heard their words of advice.
Followed by limmud, our Jewish
learning sessions, we continued into
the evening. We had dinner and then
began our advocacy sessions to prepare
to lobby with our state groups. To finish
off the day, we typically had an evening
program planned by our two teen coor-
dinators, and then we met up with our
circle groups to reflect on our day and
share our excitement for the upcoming
programs.
Some additional unique activities we
participated in were Israeli dancing, vis-
iting the U.S. Holocaust Museum, college
tours, hearing from different speakers
and our final lobby day.
In the 12 days spent on IMPACT: D.C.,
the leadership skills and new viewpoints
we formed while having an amazing
time and exploring a new part of the
world are incredible and inspired us all
to make a change.
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Jessica Lusky of West Bloomfield is a junior
at Bloomfield Hills High School.
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October 2 • 2014
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