Yom Haatzmaut, also known as Israeli Independence Day, takes place on the 5th day of the Hebrew month, Iyar. The celebration marks the anniversary of the establishment of the modern state of Israel in 1948, which made Wednesday, April 26, 2023, its 75th birthday.
To honor the momentous occasion, the Jewish Federation of South Palm Beach County funded several events, both on and off its campus.
Our campus students celebrated with thousands of others in Miami
Off-campus, students from Donna Klein Jewish Academy, Katz Hillel Day School, and Katz Yeshiva High School attended a celebratory event at LoanDepot Park in Miami, Florida. The event, hosted by South Florida Zionists and the Falic Family Foundation, in partnership with the Israeli Consulate, welcomed 22 schools to the occasion.
More than 6,500 Jewish community members, and students from around South Florida attended the commemoration. Federation was a proud sponsor of the event, and help defray some of the transportation cost for our local students travel to Miami, where they had an unforgettable day.
“Participating in the Yom Haatzmaut celebration, alongside my classmates, teachers, and [thousands of] other Jewish students from across South Florida, was an incredible experience. Not only was I able to spend time with my friends, but I was able to feel b’yachad, together, with the rest of the Jewish community in South Florida, all standing together as proud Zionists, celebrating Israel’s 75th birthday,” said Leora Tripp, a 10th-grade student at DKJA.
These programs are remarkable because they provide a sense of belonging to our students and allow them to freely celebrate their Jewish values with their peers. Enjoy the recap video of the event here.
Federation also provided nine grants to local synagogues to support their Yom Ha’atzmaut programs. Among these were Temple Sinai, which hosted a “taste of Israel,” event, featuring delicious Israeli foods and desserts to celebrate the occasion, and Congregation Shaarei Kodesh, which recreated its own Israel for families to enjoy here in Florida.
JARC welcomes Israel Elwyn for an inspiring Israeli birthday party
Exciting things were happening on campus too! The Jewish Association for Residential Care (JARC) hosted an inspiring Israeli birthday party for its members and visitors from Israel Elwyn.
JARC is dedicated to providing housing and services to enable adults with developmental disabilities to live full and meaningful lives, and this party brought everyone together to do just that.
Israel Elwyn is a similar program to JARC, but in Israel, that serves more than 5,400 individuals with disabilities, including toddlers, children, youth, young adults, adults, and seniors. The partnership between these two organizations demonstrates the wide-reaching unity that Israel provides to the Jewish Community.
Complete with a car parade around campus, an Israeli dance party, and a banquet dinner, the program celebration connected two groups of diverse community members from opposite sides of the world. It allowed them to come together to celebrate both their individuality and their mutual connection to Judaism and Israel.