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Staying Israeli in the Diaspora

Israeli Young Emissary Lidor Osmo sings Hebrew songs with children at the  inaugural event of a new group for the children and grandchildren  of Israelis living in Connecticut.

Israeli Young Emissary Lidor Osmo sings Hebrew songs with children at the inaugural event of a new group for the children and grandchildren
of Israelis living in Connecticut.

NORWALK – Recent studies show that secular Israelis living abroad find it difficult to pass on “Israeliness” to their children. A survey conducted this year by the Israeli American Council found a 17 percent intermarriage rate among the children of Israeli expatriates living in the U.S. for 10 years or more who continue to self-identify as “Israeli” or “American Israeli.”

In response, organizers of the Fairfield County-based Israelis-in-CT launched a new program for children and grandchildren of Israelis living in the area. The group met for the first time on Oct. 26 at Temple Shalom in Norwalk. Children played games in Hebrew, led by UJA/Federation Israeli Young Emissaries Yarden Bengio, Yuval Hochman, and Lidor Osmo, while parents brainstormed ideas for future events.

“It was very exciting to be a part of Sunday’s effort to enable our kids to get a taste of the culture we grew up with,” says Nurit Cohen-Citron of Fairfield, the parent of a four-year-old participant. “For kids, language and culture go hand in hand with games and activities, and realizing you can play something as simple as Tofeset [Catch] in Hebrew is not as obvious as we tend to think. Watching the kids play and sing together with the youth leaders and the rest of the kids was heartwarming beyond words. I can’t wait for the next meeting.”

One father reported to coordinator Hillit Rozenberg that his daughter asked to learn more Hebrew so that she can better understand the games at the next get-together.

Rozenberg and Israelis-in-CT founder Relly Coleman established the program in response to recent studies that show an alarming rate of assimilation among second- and third-generation American-Israelis.

“I think children of Israelis growing up here would greatly benefit from being part of a group of other Israeli kids,” says Rozenberg. “This program will give them a chance to meet for fun activities and it can help strengthen their Israeli identity and their feeling of belonging.”

For information on upcoming events: israelisinct@hotmail.com.

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