Eilat will be one of 10 Israeli cities and attractions recreated at “Israel in the Park,” Israel’s 50th anniversary celebration, Sunday in Golden Gate Park. Jerusalem, Tel Aviv and Beersheva, to name a few, will also magically appear in Sharon Meadows on this day. Eilat, however, will provide a space specifically for teens.
This site is being coordinated by 12 youth organizers representing a variety of Jewish youth groups in the area, and geared specifically toward the teen guests at Israel in the Park. The event is sponsored by the S.F.-based Jewish Community Federation, the Jewish Community Relations Council, the Israel Center, Jewish Bulletin of Northern California, the Israeli Consulate-General and the S.F.-based Bureau of Jewish Education.
“Past Israel Independence Day celebrations in the Bay Area have been family-friendly, with activities that engage both young children and adults. This project incorporates a new goal, which includes teens in the focus,” explained Heidi Winig, director of the Israel Experience, the teen division of the Israel Center.
With the guidance of Dan Alter, teen events and retreats coordinator at the Bureau of Jewish Education, Eilat’s design, by and for teenagers, will ensure that their role in this year’s celebration of Israel’s 50th will be distinctly heard.
Lani Raider, “Israel at 50” coordinator, explained, “Eilat will give teens the opportunity to play an integral role in organizing the celebration, giving them a sense of individual and community involvement. It will also provide a space at the festival that caters to teen interests.”
Eilat will feature several young bands that will play throughout the day. The bands selected will each boast Jewish teens as members, and each will include in its set a cover of a Jewish song.
Other Jewish teens will showcase their talents with a hip-hop dance performance. According to Stephanie Gerson, one of the teen dancers, “Eilat is really going to help teens feel like there is a real place for us in this celebration.”
Gerson is a Diller Teen Fellow, part of a leadership program under the auspices of the S.F.-based Jewish Community Federation’s Israel Center.
No visit to Eilat would be complete without a snorkel and a surf. So within Eilat, the Coral Reef Tent will offer a simulated snorkeling experience and a chance to try on-land windsurfing.
For more mellow types, a tent modeled after a Middle Eastern tea house will be set up for shmoozing and lounging, with opportunities for jewelry making and other crafts.
The teens involved in this planning committee were nominated and chosen based on their initiative, interest and commitment to the Jewish community, and each committee member has been charged with the task of recruiting up to 20 of their friends to help out with the festival. The young planners first convened in April at Jubilation, a regional teen conference.
While the emphasis is on creating a fun and friendly spot for teens at Israel in the Park, efforts have also been made to put the 50-year celebration into a larger context. For instance, the youth organizers’ first meeting was accented by a video presentation of David Ben-Gurion reading the Declaration of Independence in 1948.
While the idea of life without a Jewish state may not be a reality for the youth coordinating this virtual beach town, their identifications with Israel and appreciation for the anniversary resonate strongly. According to Alter, the planning committee’s adult supervisor, “Celebrating Israel is a positive and accepted way for many Americans to come out as Jews, and youth seem to get that intuitively.”