Join these new immigrants in painting and decorating the underground bomb shelter, where many of them spent the duration of the war. Enjoy lunch with the new immigrants.

Visit the Eshbal educational community, where idealistic young Israelis are making an impact on Israeli society. Learn about A New Tomorrow, the Jewish Agency's comprehensive program to empower Northern communities by fortifying children and youth by means of informal educational intervention.

Meet young Jewish, Arab and Druze youngsters who were taken from the line of fire during the war to Jewish Agency safe summer camps.

Route 2
Kiryat Yam

Israel's economy in the North was devastated during the war. Thousands of small businesses stand on the brink of bankruptcy. Meet with small business owners in the north. Hear their stories of loss and ruin. See how the Jewish Agency's immediate economic assistance after the war helped these entrepreneurs, and how its new evergreen mega loan fund will support economic recovery and growth throughout the north. (NC)

Meet some of the brave student soldiers who answered the urgent call to serve their country during the war. Hear how they were unable to work during the summer, thus losing their main source of College income. Close to 3,000 of these soldiers applied for the Jewish Agency's special scholarship in the last few weeks.

Travel to a northern absorption center. Following lunch, meet with new immigrants from Ethiopia who arrived to Israel a few short weeks before the outbreak of the war. Ethiopian students will accompany each group, and translate the personal stories of the immigrants who remained in the absorption center. Engage in enrichment activities with children and youth.

Route 3
Horfish and Tefen

The Jewish Agency played a major role in assisting non-Jewish populations during the war, both Druze and Arabs. Visit a Druze village and meet children who participated in the Jewish Agency's safe summer camps.

Visit the Village's community center that was equipped by the Jewish Agency and was used directly following the war for a school readiness camp for the village's school-aged children.

Visit the Tefen Industrial Park and see one of Israel's most successful business enterprises. Discuss ways of strengthening the north, through academic and business development programs. Meet with students from the Atidim program who work at Tefen.

Route 4
Nahariya

Arrive to the Nahariya absorption center. Meet Ethiopian parents who remained in the war-torn absorption center and their children who were taken out of the line of fire to a Jewish Agency safe summer camp at the Kiryat Yearim Youth Aliyah Village. (NC)

Visit the Nahariya hospital. Meet with senior staff and doctors who worked around the clock, under emergency conditions, to save lives during the war. See how the hospital moved entire units underground. Hear how the Jewish Agency plans to rebuild vital communal infrastructure in the north.

Route 5
Acre and Regional Colleges

The Jewish Agency Student Scholarship Fund will revitalize northern Israel by providing students attending institutes of higher education in the north with academic scholarships. Visit the Galilee Regional College and meet dynamic scholarship students and lecturers from regional colleges throughout the north. Hear how these scholarships are attracting students to northern colleges, strengthening communities and preventing the collapse of higher educational institutes across the north.

Meet soldiers who were called-up to emergency reserve duty and hear how the Jewish Agency's scholarships are helping them return to their studies.

Visit the city of Acre, and meet with small business owners who received immediate financial assistance from the Jewish Agency after the war, thus jump-starting their flailing businesses.

Experience an underground bomb shelter. Engage in discussion with Jews and Arabs who shared the bomb shelter during the war.

Route 6
Kiryat Shmona

Of all of the northern municipalities, Kiryat Shmona suffered the greatest damage. Over 1,000 missiles landed within the city's boundaries and its immediate area. A large number of these missiles were direct hits that caused significant damage and destruction. More than 17,000 of the city's 24,000 residents left during the war.

Visit the Danciger junior and senior high school and see the destruction caused by five direct rocket hits. Speak with educators and hear their concerns for reintegrating the traumatized students in the formal educational framework. Learn about the Jewish Agency's program, A New Tomorrow, for helping the students deal with their trauma and transition from crisis to excellence.

Visit one of the many underground bomb shelters and experience the difficult living conditions. See how the Jewish Agency equipped the bomb shelters, greatly easing the burden of living in stifling, unventilated, crowded conditions.

Please note that due to travel time this route will depart at 7:30am.

For further information contact:
Michael Jankelowitz,
Liaison to the Foreign Press, Jewish Agency for Israel
Mobile: +972-52-6130220; 
Voice-mail: +972-2-620-2780
michaelj@jafi.org 
website: www.jewishagency.org