22 | APRIL 6 • 2023 

OUR COMMUNITY

V

isiting Israel is a life-changing 
experience for every first-
time traveler, and this year’s 
Motor City Mission to Israel was no 
exception — one that had a profound 
impact on many participants, but not 
necessarily for the typical reasons. For 
the first time in 30 years, JARC, a Metro 
Detroit nonprofit dedicated to provid-
ing housing and services to adults with 
developmental disabilities, accompanied 
two people they serve on a trip to Israel. 
They joined the 140+ trip participants to 
experience the country, its culture, deep-
en their understanding of their Jewish 
faith and make new community connec-
tions. A bonus for the other attendees 
was the important and unexpected ben-
efit of understanding what comes with 
spending time with people who have 
developmental disabilities.
With a goal of enabling the people 
they serve to live life to its fullest, the 
two people served by JARC, Brooke 
Dunn and Jonathan Arens, accompanied 
by JARC staff members Jacob Gottlieb 
and Shira Woodside, would go on to 
gain a new perspective of their religion, 
face and overcome fears, and have a last-

ing impact on many fellow travelers who 
got to know them on the trip. 

“There are a lot of preconceived 
notions about people with develop-
mental disabilities. Having this oppor-
tunity for community members to see 
Brooke and Jonathan being just regular 
people, they told us, was eye-opening,” 
Woodside said. 

Brooke is normally shy in large 
groups, at times unsteady on her feet 
and needs assistance, and has had a life-
long fear of heights. Jonathan is a quiet 
man, but his wants are made known 
through his contagious smile. Both had 
a few fears to overcome but, in the end, 
their success changed the idea of what 
they thought they were capable of and 
what other travelers expected they could 
handle.

THE ADVENTURE BEGINS
Their trip began with a long walk from 
Jaffa to Tel Aviv to see the iconic Ben-

Gurion statue on Frishman Beach. This 
walk was the first walk of many on the 
trip, especially with Brooke and Jonathan 
always opting to walk from one place to 
another when given the option. While 
both are typically active and love walk-
ing in their daily lives, they were amazed 
by the nature they were surrounded 
by, which was much different than the 
nature they see while walking at home. 

Several people asked Brooke what she 
does at home and were surprised to hear 
that she graduated high school, works at 
Meer Apartments at Jewish Senior Life 
as a dining room attendant, and attends 
workshops at Soul Studio. Woodside 
said, “Just knowing Brooke’s background 
changes people’s ideas of what they can 
expect, especially finding out she grad-
uated high school, is employed and has 
many skills.”
In Tel Aviv, they explored the vibrant 
Carmel Market, where they tasted their 
first authentic hummus. Jonathan loved 

How a trip to Israel changed the lives of two 
people served by JARC.

Life-Changing Trip

PAT BASKIN SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS 

JOHN HARDWICK

Shira Woodside, 
Brooke Dunn, 
Jacob Gottlieb and 
Jonathan Arens

continued on page 24

