A Story of Two Noahs

Noah Bronfeld participated in one of Shorashim’s Chicago Community Taglit-Birthright Israel trip this past winter. Below is a letter from his parents which is excerpted from the latest print issue of JUF News and is also available online.

We are the proud parents of two wonderful sons, Jordan, who is almost 25, and Noah, who is almost 23. Several years ago, our son Jordan went on Taglit-Birthright Israel with Shorashim. He had a memorable trip, and it was then that I began to seriously think about how we could provide such an experience for our son Noah.

Our son Noah has autism. He has had a wonderful Jewish education through Keshet. He has attended the Sunday school and the summer programs since he was 5. Keshet has very much been instrumental in helping Noah to develop a sense of his Jewish identity. In spite of the fact that Noah’s friends participate in many Friday evening social activities, Noah is quite insistent about going to Friday night minyan and celebrating Shabbat at home, as a family. As we began to have discussions with Noah about whether he would like to go to Israel on Birthright, it became clear that not only was he interested in going, he was excited about it. Making a trip to Israel happen for Noah became a mission for us.

Continued at JUF News…