Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh

Meet Yehuda: There is nobody more ‘Asli’ (genuinely) Tel Avivian than me. I was born on Shabazi Street in Neve Tzedek. I will never leave this neighborhood. My roots are too deep to uproot. My soul will always be entwined with this place. For better or for worse until death do us part.

Meet Louise: Speaking different languages is the most essential skill you can acquire in life. It’s the key that will open every door. If you really want to communicate with the world, you have to speak its language, and that is the reason why I speak 17 of them. I think Arabic should be a mandatory language in the Israeli education system, and Hebrew in the Palestinian one. So many wars start because of miscommunication, so we should all do ourselves a favor and learn a new language. It might save our lives’.

Meet Rafi: I was born to an Ultra-orthodox family and I’m the oldest of 11 brothers and sisters. At the age of 14, I came back home with an earring and colored hair which caused my mother to faint. In about a week I rented my own place and never looked back.

Meet Dror: I am a religious Jew, I am Gay, and I am proud of them both. I volunteer in a group helping young guys like me in trying to find the right path for them. We are all God’s children.

Meet Manny and Yarit: When I gave Manny my phone number, I didn’t think anything would come of it. My family is slightly religious (Masoretim) so the issue wasn’t the color but rather the fact that Manny is not Jewish. Love can triumph over everything.

Meet Miriam: If we go out to meet the diversity, the others, we will know, we will feel, we will see the painful and happy eyes, and even if there is an abyss between us, we can build bridges over them… If you miss one piece of the puzzle, the picture will not be complete, so I will not give up any part of my people.

Meet SHMULIK:
I am not your typical Ultra-Orthodox Jew. Nine years ago, friends took me to Uman (a pilgrimage site for Breslov Hasidim Jews), where I discovered the teaching of Rabi Nachman. It was like an awakening for me and I became a Breslov. Faith comes from the inside out. I’m your modern hipster Jew.

Meet Asher: I didn’t go to the Ballot box today because all the politicians are the same. Once they claimed their Throne in the Parliament, they tend to forget the people who sent them.

Meet Mahmoud: The problem is that the average Joe feels that he doesn’t have any influence on the situation, so everybody is concentrated on their own personal life and not seeking to change reality. We have to start building bridges between Jews and Arabs because nobody is going anywhere. We have to start educating people on both sides to respect one another and it has to start from kindergarten. Living in the Middle East doesn’t have to be a sum zero game.

Meet Alon: I came from a house that is Shomer Masoret (traditional) but I consider myself an Israeli more than a Jew. I see myself as a free spirit and sometimes that can contradict Orthodox Judaism. My philosophy is simple: Live and let live.

Meet Kassa: If there is someone out there who is reading this and has been sexually assaulted, I want you to know that you will find the strength inside, as I did to survive the hell you have been going through.

Meet Simcha and Natan:
Simcha (87, left) and Natan (80, right)
What kept us together all these years was a good sense of humor. We tend to look on the brighter side of life. If you don’t, you become an ‘old fart’, regardless of your age.

Meet AKIVA: I was born in Singapor and was raised as a Christian. All of my life I have been asking myself existential questions. After a long search I found all the answers in Judaism and decided to convert. It was a long and meaningful process, but it was all worth it. Sometimes I feel like a biblical character for deciding to leave my HOME and family behind me and devote myself to God

Meet AMIT: Kids are born pure, but they are checking their boundaries all the time. In that process they can behave to others like monsters and most of the time they don’t have a grownup that will stop them. When I manage to stop a child from hitting another child, I feel that I accomplished my calling: saving little souls from being abused.