On Tuesday night, we all arrived at JFK airport ready and excited for the 15th annual Chesed Mission to Israel. A group of 56 students and 5 faculty members, led by Rabbi Naftali Besser and Mrs. Susan Franco, decided to spend their winter break in Israel visiting the sick, meeting with soldiers, volunteering in soup kitchens, interacting with special children, and so much more. After 11 and a half hours, we arrived at the Ben-Gurion Airport located in Tel-Aviv. When we got off the plane, we went straight to the Kotel to pray Arbit. It was so moving to pray by the Kotel as soon as we arrived in Israel. After we prayed, we took a group picture and headed to the Inbal hotel. We unpacked, settled in, and spent time with friends before walking to Emek Refaim for dinner.
After dinner we all went back to the hotel and packed bags of hats, long johns, socks, scarves and other items for soldiers that we will deliver to them in the next few days. We are all super excited to see what the full week of chesed has in store for us! ~Ronnie Menashe, Class of 2018
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