M

arcy Tatelbaum, 44, 
made aliyah in 2007 
with her husband, 
Yehuda, and their three chil-
dren, Meir, Yakir and Techelet 
who are now 21, 19, and 16 
years old. She loves living in 
Israel where every day contrib-
utes to a meaningful existence.

JN: Do you remember an 
early trip to Israel?
MT: When I was about 8 years 
old, we came on a family trip 
to Israel for two weeks. The 
next time we came was when 
my sister was here in seminary, 
which was her 12th grade year 
at Akiva (now Farber).
Starting when I was 15, I 

took many trips on my own, 
for winter break and summers 
to visit family and friends and 
then to Michlelet Esther for 
seminary after high school. 
Once I married my husband, 
whose family lives here, we 
used to come every year or two.

JN: Where did your family 
go to shul and where did 
you go to camp in the sum-
mers?
MT: When I was a young child, 
we lived near Shomrei Emunah, 
and then when I was 9, we 
moved to the Young Israel of 
Southfield area. I went to Camp 
Stone every summer from age 
9 until 14.

JN: Did your family promote 
Zionism in your house?
MT: Yes, very much so. My 
father was deeply in love with 
this country. He took his first 
trip to Israel in 1967. He used 
to come on trips specifically 
during intifadas when nobody 
was coming to Israel, just to 
support the hurting tourist 
economy as much as he could. 
My father was very dedicated 
to local organizations that were 
Israel-strong, such as Young 
Israel and Akiva. 

JN: Were you always plan-
ning to make aliyah?
MT: In my heart, I had wanted 
to live in Israel, but my fears 
always held me back; and I 
didn’t want to be so far from 
my family. But once my kids 
started going to Akiva, I real-
ized I was raising my children 
with this “Israeliness.
” The 
Torah Mitzion organization was 
very active then in Akiva and in 
the community. They brought 
Israel to us and a light to our 
community, and I wanted to 
live that way. For me, it was 
an authentic way of life that 
you couldn’t compare to life 
in Detroit. As a Jewish parent, 
I felt strongly that it was my 
responsibility to give my chil-
dren the opportunity to grow 
up in a Jewish country.
My oldest, Meir, was in first 
grade at Akiva; and there, if you 
were moving to Israel, you were 
a superstar!

JN: What was your aliyah 
flight like?
MT: We were on a charter 
flight with Nefesh B’Nefesh so 
it was fun and hectic. The arriv-
al was really special. We were 
greeted by family and friends. 
After living in Jerusalem for 
one year, we decided to move to 
Maale Adumim.

JN: What are you both 
doing professionally?
MT: Yehuda is an attorney; he 

specializes in personal injury 
law. I started out as a content 
writer for several startups and 
eventually took a writing role 
at Hometalk. That role evolved, 
and for the past 13 years, I was 
the director of human resourc-
es. Recently, I started a new job 
as head of HR at a global start-
up, Triple Whale.

JN: What are the kids up to 
now?
MT: Meir just finished his 
army service through Yeshivat 
Hesder Tsfat, where he will be 
studying for the next year and 
a half.
Yakir completed a year of 
Mechina (army preparatory 
year of study) at Ein Prat, in 
Kibbutz Sufa on the southern 
Gaza border, which he loved. 
In August, he started his army 
service in Shiryon (tanks).
Techelet is in 10th grade at 
the local Amit girls high school 
and is an amazing student.

JN: Do you miss anything 
about living in Detroit?
MT: I miss the people. The way 
people take care of each other 
in the Detroit community is 
second to none.
 
JN: Do you have a message 
for anybody who is reading 
this interview and thinking 
about making aliyah?
MT: For me, living in Israel 
opened my eyes to diversity. 
Because it’s so homogenous in 
Detroit, especially within the 
Modern Orthodox community, 
you really don’t have the chance 
to meet and learn from Jewish 
people from other cultures. 
I’ve learned in Israel that there 
are all different types of Jews. 
There’s no one way to be a Jew 
and to love God.
Living in Israel is a gift of an 
opportunity for growth in every 
way: personal, spiritual, profes-
sional. The opportunities here 
to live a happy and satisfying 
life are boundless. 

Meet 
Marcy 
Tatelbaum

38 | FEBRUARY 24 • 2022 

ERETZ

Marcy Tatelbaum, her husband, Yehuda, and their three children, 
Techelet. Meir and Yakir.

‘Living in Israel is a gift,’ she says.

AVIVA ZACKS CONTRIBUTING WRITER

MEET THE OLIM

