Jackie Farber – Southern NCSY
The moment I stood in front of the Western Wall in Jerusalem in July of 2011 changed my life forever. I could feel the tremendous amount of spirituality glowing in every air molecule hovering around me. The souls of every human being flourished everywhere I went. My four-week stay in Israel on NCSY’s The Jerusalem Journey (TJJ) marked the beginning of my spiritual growth and religious journey.
My Jewish studies began when I enrolled in my synagogue’s Talmud Torah in kindergarten. Like many Hebrew schools that only meet twice a week, my Jewish education consisted of children’s bible stories and learning how to read enough Hebrew to become a bat mitzvah. Three months after graduating from Hebrew school, I moved from my populated Jewish community in Fairfield, Connecticut to Huntsville, Alabama (commonly known as the “Bible Belt”). During my sophomore year, a local Jewish family told me about NCSY’S TJJ. The next evening, I enrolled for the best summer of my life.
I stepped onto the plane for Israel as a typical American teenage girl. My thoughts circulated around friends and summer break. My life did not have a specific journey nor a strong spiritual connection with Hashem. Between our hikes, tours in holy sites and chaburas, my neshama yearned for learning Torah and connecting with Hashem. My Jewish connection was not simply wearing a Jewish necklace and eating matzah on Pesach anymore. Now, my Jewish connection includes everything my brothers and sisters have lived and died for in the past 5,773 years.
After spending a summer on NCSY’s TJJ, Jackie spent her winter break learning Torah on NCSY’s National Yarchei Kallah.
A year in a half since my life-changing trip, my lifestyle has shifted from a typical secular life to a life dedicated to serving Hashem. Now, I read Torah and daven daily, I keep Shabbat every week, and I observe the practices of shomer negiah and tzniut. I learn regularly with NCSY advisors about prayer and Jewish beliefs. Recently, I began learning conversational Hebrew with an advisor as well. I am excited to attend Machon Ma’ayan next year and attend Yeshiva University afterwards. Although I grew up in a town with a lot of Jews, it was not until I moved to Alabama and went on TJJ that I truly began my journey to becoming an observant Jew. I am forever grateful for NCSY, because without them, I do not know where I would be today.