metro
s"“tev ►
i Israe
Amy Gross Nachon finds her way.
Vivian Henoch
Special to the Jewish News
I
srael has been her classroom, her
field of work ... her destination
where life has taken her. "This is a
story I could never have imagined for
myself," says Amy Gross Nachon, 31, now
living the life of a busy suburban mom
just outside of Tel Aviv.
Asked about her personal journey
from Farmington Hills to Israel and her
decision to make aliyah seven years ago,
Amy recounts the summer of 2002 at
Tamarack Camps, where she worked as a
specialty counselor.
"I would say that was the summer
I caught the bug to go to Israel. That
was the summer of the second intifada.
There were bombings in Israel every
day, and Federation reached out to more
than 300 Israeli teens and brought them
to Michigan for a Tamarack summer
camping experience we all would never
forget?'
Formative Years
Having made so many Israeli friends that
first summer, Amy yearned to visit Israel
and found her first opportunity with a
Hillel Taglit-Birthright trip while attend-
ing Michigan State University. With a
B.A. in English from MSU — and an
undecided career path after graduation
in 2005 — Amy returned to Israel as a
graduate fellow in a study-abroad pro-
gram at Hebrew University in Jerusalem.
Back in the states in 2006, Amy
jumped at the opportunity to take a job
in Miami with Young Judaea as an Israel
programs recruiter. Two years later,
Young Judaea brought her back to Israel,
where she made aliyah.
Following Her Heart
Reflecting on her career decisions —
working for programs in Israel, visiting
and traveling the country since her early
20s and now making her home and rais-
ing a family there — Amy says, "The
move to Israel was a process that took
years to get to. Young Judaea was the
driving force that led me to Israel, and I
took the job with them because I wanted
to see where life in Israel would take me."
It was the summer before she made
aliyah when Amy's job would take her
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February 26 • 2015
to Camp Kimama, an "American-style
Jewish camping program" where she
would meet its director and her hus-
band-to-be, Avishay Nachon.
"Beshert" is the word she uses to
describe meeting Avishay. She had come
to the camp to speak to his international
campers about spending their gap year
in Israel. "We just knew we were meant
for each other. There were so many simi-
larities between us. Even though we had
completely different backgrounds, we
had common ground?'
Married in 2010, Amy and Avishay
are the proud parents of Ori, born in
October 2013.
"Tel Aviv is one of the most exciting
cities in the world, full of young people,
energy and creativity. There is never a
dull moment here," Amy says. "Just the
other day I was standing in line at Cofix
(a new coffee shop where everything
costs 5 shekels) and I heard at least five
different languages. Tel Aviv is the global
Jewish city, and my friends come from all
different parts of the world. I love that!
Living here certainly has its challenges.
I forget that I am living amidst a major
conflict until moments of terror snap me
back into reality?'
Transitions: From
Professional To Family Life
After six years with Young Judaea and
shortly before Ori was born, Amy took a
job with a company called Kenes Tours,
organizing conferences and exhibitions.
She took a year off with the baby, and
has since returned to work as a program-
ming and recruitment coordinator with
Aardvark Israel Gap Year and Study
Abroad Program.
"In Israel, being a stay-at-home mom
isn't really an option. I have to work. We
have an apartment, close enough to Tel
Aviv to enjoy city living, in a quiet neigh-
borhood filled with young couples, lots
of kids and families. And I love where
I send Ori to gan [preschool], just two
streets over from where we live. He loves
it. And I love seeing him fit in so easily
with the other children. He's just started
to talk ... both in Hebrew and English. It
will be interesting to see how that devel-
ops?'
Describing her command of Hebrew,
Amy admits, "Back in the day, I was a
Married in 2010, Amy and Avishay are the proud parents of Ori, born in October
2013.