One of our Federation’s top priorities is getting more community members to visit Israel – especially teenagers as we know these trips have a profound impact on participants and strengthen their lifelong Jewish identities. That’s why we’re proud to introduce the Sandra & Lawrence Post Israel Grants Program.
Formerly known as Israel Connections/Experiences (ICE), the Sandra & Lawrence Post Israel Grants Program of Jewish Federation Los Angeles provides grants to local high school and college students visiting Israel for the first time on peer-educational trips primarily ranging from 2-6 weeks. This includes the annual March of the Living trip which takes high school students and Holocaust survivors on an unforgettable journey to Poland and Israel.
We provide grants of $500 per student, who also may receive grants from their synagogues and other communal organizations. We recognize that this assistance may still put the trips out of reach for many families, so our Federation also connects the students to need-based financial aid.
The Sandra & Lawrence Post Israel Grants Program has helped send close to 5,000 students from our community to Israel over the last 15 years. Below is just a small sample of the feedback we’re received from the students:
- “It was an amazing experience, and I learned so much about my culture and myself. While the sites we visited in Poland were painfully heartbreaking to see, I know that those images will remain seared into my memory for the rest of my life, and I find myself oddly grateful for that. Because of the things that my fellow participants and I saw, we are able to assure ourselves that we will never again allow anybody to destroy an entire culture, simply because of prejudices held against them.”
- “Thank you so much for the generous scholarship money. I had an amazing time in Israel and it was one of the best experiences of my entire life thanks to you (Federation). It was a life changing trip and something that I will always have. Your support made the impossible, possible. I will carry these memories and experiences with me for the rest of my life.”
- “Traveling Israel was a very important experience for me, and I now developed my Judaic ways for becoming a young adult. It really was a memorable trip that I will never forget and cannot wait to pass down such incredible stories. I could not thank you more for the ultimate Israel trip you gave me.”
We are grateful for the generosity of the Posts, long time leaders and donors within our Federation, for making it possible for teens and young adults from our community to visit Israel, an important strategy in fulfilling our Federation’s mission of ensuring a strong and vibrant Jewish future.
For more information on the Sandra & Lawrence Post Israel Grants Program, contact us at (323) 761-8062.
