NEWSLETTER NO. 34 – September 2007
Shalom bogrim vechaverim,
“when the month of Elul approaches, the smell of the fall appears and we
start our song from the beginning… - Naomi Shemer
The hottest summer days are behind us. The fields are blooming with autumn flowers and in the markets the appearance of fresh yellow dates and pomegranate symbolizes the season and announces the approaching festivals – Rosh Hashana, Yom Kippur, Succot and Simchat Torah! The month of Elul is a month of soul searching and looking forward to a year of peace and happiness.
This year was a special year for Ulpan Akiva. After the sale of 2/3rds of the campus we are now busy with the plans for building a new Ulpan and need all our graduates and friends to help us financially – with whatever they can! We will inform you shortly of the different donation opportunities.
MR. AVRAHAM INFELD JOINS OUR BOARD OF DIRECTORS! Ulpan Akiva is honored and privileged to have Mr. Avraham Infeld on our Board. A veteran Jewish educator, former teacher at Ulpan Akiva, Hillel President, founder and President Emeritus of the Melitz Center, he strongly believes that the vision of Ulpan Akiva must be realized and has raised our hopes for a better future.
END OF SUMMER COURSES: This summer we had a total of 501 students studying at the Ulpan – the highest recorded! New Immigrants and tourists from all over the world, Hebrew teachers from the Ramaz School in New York and their families – all adding to the unique atmosphere here.
“SHACHAF” PROJECT - training Hebrew Teachers from the Gola and sponsored by the Grinspoon and the Morningstar Foundations was a great success. Hebrew Teachers from North and South America , Poland and kindergarten Teachers from New Jersey spent 3.5 weeks on campus learning Ulpan Akiva’s unique teaching methods and enhancing their Hebrew.
“ PASHOSH” - FAMILY PROGRAM – KIDS TOO” : the laughter and joy of the 38 children could be heard for two months around the campus. Within their program, they studied Hebrew in different ways, visited interesting sites and displayed their achievements.
“ZAMIR” – TEENS PROGRAM – A group of 64 teens participated in the program – some for the second and third time! All of them did not expect to have such a wonderful experience – studying Hebrew as well as having two wonderful counselors and a rich social program.
“MASA – MAOF PROGRAM” – A group of 25 Jewish students from all over the world are currently studying Hebrew at Ulpan Akiva within the “Masa” program, for 6 months.
I would like to wish you all and your families –
SHANA TOVA - MAY ALL YOUR WISHES BE FULFILLED!
שנה טובה וגמר חתימה טובה
Esther Perron and the staff of Ulpan Akiva
Vocabulary Corner :
Blessing - ברכה
Date - תמר
Pomegranate - רימון
Closure (of the fast) - נעילה
Guests in the Succah - אושפיזין
Journey - מסע