NOVEMBER 2 • 2023 | 39
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Ruby Bagdade, a Bloomfield Hills High School 
junior, was about seven weeks into studying 
abroad via the Jewish National Fund (JNF) 
Impact Fellowship at the Alexander Muss High 
School in Israel when terror broke out at the 
hands of Hamas. 
The fellowship, which was sup-
posed to last four months, pre-
pares a select group of high school 
students from around the world to 
take their place as future Jewish 
change-makers. When their study 
abroad is complete, fellows return 
home as ambassadors for Israel 
and the Jewish people. 
When the attacks began 
that Saturday morning, the stu-
dents were staying at a hotel 
in Jerusalem while on a trip for 
Simchat Torah. Students and staff were woken 
up by sirens and immediately went down to 
the bomb shelter. 
“I think the sirens went off eight times 
between 8 a.m. and about noon,” Bagdade 
said. “We only had to be down in the shelter 
for 15 minutes at a time, but we had to keep 
going up and down.”
The group ended up traveling back to their 
campus in Hod HaSharon, near Tel Aviv, once 
things somewhat calmed down in Jerusalem. 
The bus ride back was a little concerning 
though, Bagdade said, as there were sirens 
blaring in Tel Aviv along the way. 
Lots of discussions with school and JNF offi-
cials about possible next steps took place in 
the following hours and days. Everything was 
up in the air. 
On Tuesday, classes were canceled. That 
same day, the students made care packages 
that were delivered to families in southern 
Israel and soldiers fighting by the Gaza border. 
Bagdade estimates they packed over 1,500 
care packages in just a few hours. 
It was soon after that when the students 
were told by JNF that plans were made for 
them to go home. 
“By then we already had two out of four of 
our counselors drafted for reserve duty. So 
most people were anticipating it,” Badgade 
said. “I think it was Wednesday we flew to 
Rome, stayed overnight, then we flew to 
Boston, where we all flew on our respective 

flights home.” Before leaving Israel, the stu-
dents had to go down to the bomb shelter 
under the airport due to sirens going off again. 
Those few days in Israel after the attacks 
were a whirlwind for the students. The sirens 
on that first day understandably freaked every-
one out, Bagdade said, and while the threat 
of missiles is unfortunately not too uncommon 
in Israel, it was quickly apparent this time was 
different. 
“When we looked on social media, we 
could see Israel was declaring a state of war. 
Everyone was getting pretty ner-
vous at that point,” she said. “And 
the next few days were very stress-
ful because we weren’t sure if we 
were going to get out and when 
the next siren would go off.”
Bagdade says she was in con-
stant contact with her parents 
during that time.
“I would text my parents any-
time a siren would go off. It was 
obviously stressful, and I know 
my parents were up late at night, 
checking the phone, seeing if anything had 
happened,” she recalled. 
There have been discussions to see if there 
could be any type of continuation of the fel-
lowship, Bagdade says, but a decision has yet 
to be made. As of now, she is returning to her 
home school, Bloomfield Hills High School. 
Bagdade returned home on the Thursday 
night after the war began. The high school 
junior says there was definitely a sense of 
relief in being home, and while her time in 
Israel being cut short was disappointing, the 
gravity of the situation outweighs all. 
“Reintegrating is definitely hard because of 
everything I know I’m missing, but my thoughts 
and prayers are always going to be with Israel,” 
Bagdade said. “Everyone knows someone in 
Israel affected by this, and we’re all praying it 
ends soon and as few people as possible get 
hurt.”
Bagdade and the other JNF fellows started 
a fundraiser with all proceeds going to help 
the Israeli soldiers and civilians affected by 
the brutal Hamas attacks. In just a few days, it 
raised over $100,000. 
“Even though it’s an unfortunate turn of 
events, I’m glad this fellowship has strength-
ened my connection with Israel, and I hope 
myself and my peers will continue to support 
Israel even when it’s not in conflict like this,’ 
Bagdade said. “Even though our time was cut 
short, the connections I’ve made will last a life-
time. I’m very grateful for the experience.” 

Metro Detroit JNF Fellow 
Returns Home After Terror 
in Israel

continued on page 40

Ashdod and spent the 
morning of Oct. 7 in a 
shelter. She said they could 
feel the house shake from 
nearby explosions, and at 
one point, she saw heavy 
smoke in the sky due to the 
defense of the Iron Dome. 

Although the family was 
observing Shabbat, some-
one turned on the news. 
As the day progressed, 
Rapoport says they 
watched as her friend’s 
uncles, one by one, were 
called up for duty. 
“It was a hectic experi-
ence. I played a lot with 
the kids and tried to stay 
away from hearing about 
what was happening and 
focus on being there for 
the children,” she says. 
As soon as the holiday 
ended in Israel, Rapoport 
called a family member 
who wasn’t observant. She 
knew her parents would 
be unreachable because it 
was still Simchat Torah at 
home. The message of her 
safety was related to her 
parents, who wanted her 
to leave Israel but were 
respectful of her decision 
to stay. 
Smith was in Jerusalem 
with relatives when the 
war erupted. Their rabbi 
advised congregants to 
come to shul for Simchat 
Torah. As Smith walked 
to the synagogue with her 
young cousins, sirens alert-
ed them to take cover. 
She saw a group of 
Israeli mothers running 
with their children into 
an apartment building 
and followed them, and 
everyone crammed into the 
bomb shelter. 
When it was safe to 
leave, she and the children 

DANNY SCHWARTZ STAFF WRITER

Ruby Bagdade

