D

uring my winter 
break, I felt obligated 
to go to Israel and 
help a nation in need. Israel 
has always been agriculturally 
independent, given the 
region’s geopolitical landscape. 
Following Hamas’ horrific 
attack on Oct. 7, many of the 
migrant workers left the nation, 
creating a significant labor 
shortage on the farms, which 
has caused Israeli farmers to 
struggle to keep their farms 
operational.
My goal was to help 
provide more food security 
to a nation lacking in that by 
working on several farms. 
Some of the things I did were 
harvesting peppers, tomatoes 
and cucumbers, and planting 
fennel. The work was not easy, 
but I was so happy to do it, and 
the farmers were extremely 
appreciative of all the volunteers 
who helped them. 
The farmer I was planting 
fennel for grilled lunch for us 
at his home as a token of his 
appreciation on my group’s last 
day. This was one of my favorite 
moments of my trip because, 
after the meal, he told us that 
we saved his farm. A farm that 
has been passed on to him by 
his father will be able to survive 
another harvest and will soon 
be passed on to his son.
No matter if it was a farmer, 
soldier or just a random person 
on the street, people were 
shocked to see that there was 
a community outside of Israel 

that supported them. Most 
Israelis I talked to feel that 
the whole world is against 
them. But in their uncertainty, 
they have relied on a profound 
strength in themselves to keep 
pushing forward as a civil 
society. 
Currently in Israel, there is 
no left or right. There is only 
unity, one people determined 
and focused on the survival of 
a nation, who witnessed the 
highest levels of kindness and 
strength in their community. 
Unfortunately, this is not 
the case at Wayne State. The 
campus is very divided, and 
misinformation about Israel 
is ramped up, which is being 
expressed by antisemitism on 
campus from students, teaching 
assistants and professors. 
As co-founder and vice pres-
ident of Students for Israel at 
Wayne State, I am focused on 
providing a platform of objec-
tive and candid learning about 
the wonders Israel provides to 
the world, the country’s history 
and what is going on with the 
current Israel-Hamas war. 
I hope we can combat mis-
conceptions about Israel and 
ultimately make the campus a 
safer place for the Jewish com-
munity by educating people 
about Israel. @
 
Jared Pazner is a graduate 
student at Wayne State University 
earning his MBA. He spent four 
weeks in January volunteering in 
Israel.

Winter Break 
on the Farm

Jared Pazner } jewish@edu writer

for college students 
by college students

TOP: The author (in blue T-shirt, tan hat) with fellow volunteers plant-
ing fennel. ABOVE: Volunteers help get peppers ready for market.

54 | FEBRUARY 15 • 2024 

