Aliyah is on the rise! Many Baltimoreans have come to Eretz Yisrael in recent years. Although most of them are singles or young families, seniors are a growing demographic of those desiring to spend their lives in our holy land. All of them face challenges: singles paving their way to marriage and career, families navigating the job market and school systems, and seniors learning the bureaucratic ropes. And Hebrew is a problem for everyone!
My husband and I are among those making aliyah as retirees. But the question is: Do all gil shilishi (the Israeli term for seniors, which literally means “third age”) actually retire? It depends on who they are! Here are the stories of a few golden age Baltimoreans who have reinvented themselves in Israel.
Avi and Marsha Grant
The Grants moved to Yerushalayim
in 2016. Marsha was a help desk manager in Baltimore and brought her job with
her! During Covid she was laid off, as were many others. This was a concern as
her Hebrew level was conversational but not professional. On top of that,
Marsha was already at the official retirement age in Israel. (The retirement
age for males is 67, and 62 for females, although the government is working on
raising the female retirement age.)
“What to do? Go to Kever Rochel
and daven!” says Marsha, “And within two weeks, with a lot of siyata d’Shmaya,
I had three solid prospects.” One was based in Israel and two were remote jobs
in the U.S. The Israeli job was with a company unknown to her and to which she
did not formally apply. The company sought her out! Ultimately, that is the job
Marsha chose. She decided to work Israeli day hours and not U.S. hours, which
are nighttime in Israel. Also, in the aftermath of Covid, Marsha wanted to be
with people and not isolated at home. The company, CityBook, is a chareidi
company, and the day shift is comprised almost exclusively of women. Marsha
manages a staff of five women running the IT department and enjoys what she
does. She has forged new friendships and is learning spoken and professional
Hebrew on the job.
Joe and Galia Berry
Back in the U.S., Joe was a
software engineer; Galia was a photographer and writer. Joe’s employer said it
wouldn’t be a problem for him to work from Israel. Unfortunately, six months
after they arrived, in 2017, the company dismissed all of its workers,
including Joe. They were told it would be very difficult for him to find work
at his age, 69. Within two weeks, however, he had three offers of employment as
a software engineer! The salary is less than his U.S. salary, but the Berrys
find they don’t need as much income to live in Israel as in America. Also, the
benefits are excellent!
Joe works for a company in Yokneam
and loves it: “I feel I am contributing to Israel’s development as a global
presence in the world of hi-tech,” he says. After eight years, the company
simply refuses to let him retire. He now works two days a week, which provides
income but allows time to pursue personal interests that currently include
Torah learning plus astrophysics classes online.
Galia started working freelance
for a few Israeli companies as a content writer but then decided to start an
Airbnb-type business. They live in the Galil, in a single-family home. The
entire upstairs is designed as a separate apartment with a private entrance. “It’s
the perfect spot to welcome guests from around the world,” says Galia. “There
is a gorgeous view of the Carmel mountains, the Mediterranean Sea, Haifa, and
Akko from the private terrace, plus it is conveniently located near all the
famous archeological, nature, and religious sites in Israel’s North. The
visitors love it!” The Berrys have hosted some very interesting guests,
including a high-ranking military officer who does top secret work in the
region, a German family that begged for forgiveness for the sins of the
Holocaust, and a couple in a Mercedes SUV who came all the way from Dubai via
Saudi Arabia and Jordan (a 22-hour drive!)
The Berrys’ wise words for those
considering aliyah:
1) Successful living in Israel is
about ratzon (volition). If you want it badly enough, you will find a
way to make it work. Israel really gives you a chance to reinvent yourself, and
you may find that you like the new you better than the old you!
2) Learn as much Hebrew as
possible before making aliyah. People can take Hebrew lessons online,
local classes, or private tutoring before they arrive.
3) In Israel, one experiences hashgacha
pratis (Heavenly intervention) in just about every facet of life; it is
truly amazing how things “just happen.” You live a truly meaningful life every
single day. You feel Hashem’s presence everywhere and see open miracles in
front of you all the time. People say that they never felt anything close to
this in the U.S.
4) The Berrys find the medical
care to be stellar, and they do not need to worry about high insurance costs.
5) Israeli culture shows a lot
of respect for the elderly, including completely free public transportation on
trains and buses throughout Israel for citizens age 67-plus; being able to go
to the front of a line from age 80; and people standing up for you to sit in a
crowded, standing-room-only bus or train.
6) Maybe you can’t afford
Jerusalem or Tel Aviv, but there are limitless places where you can live
very happily.
7) Israel truly is Home. Here, one
has a chance to fulfill Jewish destiny and really be a part of making history.
Everyone’s presence is both necessary and valuable. You help build the country
just by being in Israel!
8) Once you live here, you seem to
get a certain clarity that is lacking when you live outside of Israel. Sounds
crazy, but it really is true; you begin to see the world differently through
Israeli eyes.
9) Many places have activities
specifically for seniors, including everything from classes (like one would
find at the JCC, such as art, exercise, etc.), trips both within Israel and
abroad, volunteer opportunities, and lectures (both shiurim and secular
topics such as history, politics, etc.). If you are retired in Israel, you can
be busy!
To the Berrys, the only downside
of living in Israel is that they came without any family. They left four
married children and 17 grandchildren behind. On the bright side, every year, a
grandchild or two comes to Israel for a year to study in seminary or yeshiva,
which enables a very close one-on-one bond. The grandchildren leave with very
positive thoughts about Israel!
Should anyone like to experience
life in the North in an Israeli village or just have a pleasant vacation, the
Berrys would certainly appreciate your business. To find out more about the tzimmer
(guest accommodations), write to www.bat-harim.com.
Tamar (Stephanie) Rabinowitz
In Baltimore, Tamar served as
Rabbi Shmuel Silber’s executive assistant. She now works with Aish CEO Rabbi Steve
Burg and serves as Director of VIP Experiences at the Aish World Center in the
Old City of Jerusalem. Just before her 2017 aliyah date, Tamar saw the
position at Aish advertised on Janglo and started working immediately upon her
arrival in Israel. She found that entering the Israeli workforce helped her
quickly integrate into the rhythm of Israeli life. The mission of Aish to
inspire every Jew to live a more thoughtful, spiritual, and impactful life
through learning and sharing timeless Jewish wisdom is palpable every day at
Aish: in the yeshiva, the seminary, the open classes, and online. “I feel
blessed to be around gifted educators and creative minds and to play a small
role in moving the mission forward to benefit Klal Yisrael,” says
Tamar. “And having the opportunity to visit the Kotel every day is its own
amazing blessing and privilege that never gets old!” Tamar is pleased to use
English and gets by with help for the necessary Hebrew. Tamar says she loves
what she does in Israel and considers it wonderful to get to see friends and
Baltimore community members when they visit Jerusalem and Aish.
Shlomit Koffler Weinreb
Shlomit came to Israel in 2021 and
lives in Efrat. Formerly, she was in advertising and marketing as a writer and
later a creative director for agencies and private clients. In 2017, Hashem
gave Shlomit the idea to write a musical about King David, and although she had
come to Israel to retire, she became acquainted with the Women’s Performance Community
in Jerusalem. This led Shlomit on the path to produce a new musical for women
about the life of King David. She established New Note Productions and is now
the executive producer, composer/lyricist, and co-scriptwriter of the musical, “David
the Servant King.” It will be performed in Jerusalem and Beit Shemesh in late
January and early February.
“There was a tremendous amount of hashgacha
pratis on the path to creating the show,” says Shlomit, “from talented
people who joined the staff, assistance with writing the script, money
donations, and more.” This is a semi-professional production with the
participation of professional directors and actresses. If you’d like to know
more about it, visit www.davidservantking.com. Quite a number of people from
Baltimore are involved in the production, so there is a strong Baltimore
connection. There will be a livestream of the show for women outside of Israel
on Sunday, February 1, at 1 p.m. (EST). Check the website for details.
R’ Isar and Sara Rotenberg
After arriving in Yerushalayim in
2016, my first priority was acclimation to Eretz Yisrael and attending ulpan.
Then Corona hit. After that passed, I decided I wanted to work outside the
home. But what? It had to be interesting, involve people, be flexible, use
English, and not be too far away. Hashem sent me the idea of working toward the
goal of being a Kotel Tunnel tour guide. First, I needed to find out
information about the course, which was easier said than done! Then, I was
invited to an interview, a four-hour interactive session which included a
written test, model lesson, interacting with others, one-on-one interview in
Hebrew, and various other activities. B”H, I received an email the next
morning that I was accepted to the course to become an English-speaking tour
guide. The course was given in college-level rapid fire Hebrew. (To an Israeli
it makes perfect sense; to those from chutz la’aretz (abroad), it makes
no sense.) It was no small task, but I completed the course.
I love being a guide. Many
Baltimoreans (past and present) have come on my tours. My goal is for each
participant to experience the tour, not just see pieces of the past. Some say
that I have reinvented myself, but I do not see it that way. As my husband
says, “Sara was always a teacher, now she is just teaching another sugya
(topic).” People ask me if I tire of giving the same tours. Absolutely not!
Each tour is a new opportunity, with different participants who have varied
knowledge bases. The goal is to connect to each member of the group. Numerous
questions come up, and sometimes I must think quickly of an appropriate answer.
The guides have an opportunity to
attend classes to hear about recent finds in the tunnels. There is continuous
excavation, which reveals new information and discoveries. There are two tours
in the tunnels: The Great Stone tour opened in 1996, and the Great Bridge tour
opened in 2022. There is a third tour that is closed to the public, but, b”H,
I have been fortunate to receive permission to book tours for this new
area. Should you wish to contact me: srotenberg8@gmail.com, Israel cell and WhatsApp
is 058-419-8585 or leave messages at 410-358-5677.
Dr. Rivkah Lambert Adler
Rivkah worked for 25 years in
university administration. Her last job in Baltimore was director of adult education
at the Center for Jewish Education. In the decade or so before Rabbi Elan and
Dr. Rivkah Lambert Adler came on aliyah in 2010, Rivkah ran a very
active Chug Aliyah in Baltimore, bringing aliyah resources to the
attention of many Baltimore families. The family first settled in Ma’ale Adumim
and now live in Efrat.
“I had excellent connections in
the aliyah area and fully expected to find work helping others make aliyah,”
says Rivkah. “That didn’t happen. Instead, after ulpan, I did some
administrative work in a training program, handled social media for a few
clients, and eventually fell into a freelance journalism role. I was always
able to work using English.”
One of the publications Rivkah
wrote for was Israel365, which has a particular outreach to Christian
supporters of Israel. Through Israel365, she learned about a phenomenon that
she calls the “Torah awakening among non-Jews.” Most Jews aren’t aware that
there are tens of millions of non-Jews around the world who, exactly as
Zechariah 8:23 predicted, recognize that G-d’s presence is with the Jewish
people and are eager to learn Torah from Jews.
Rivkah published three books on
this topic and is working on a fourth. In addition, she teaches a Torah class
each week to current and former Christian women from around the world. Rivkah
absolutely sees this Torah awakening as a part of the geula. Although
she still works as a freelance journalist specializing in kiddush Hashem
stories from Israel, working with the nations has become her passion. Rivkah
truly believes that Hashem opened this door for her to help bring the geula
davka because of aliyah.
Rabbi Mitchell Ackerson
Rabbi Ackerson was a Chaplain
(Colonel) for the U.S. Army (retired) and the rabbi and director of pastoral care
for Sinai Hospital and Lifebridge Health. He made aliyah in 2018; he and
his wife live in Modiin. He feels Eretz Yisrael is a wonderful place to take
stock and reinvent oneself or try something new, especially when one is a bit
older. Now, he is a licensed tour guide!
Israel takes tour guiding very
seriously and has strict requirements. One must take a two-year course with
both classes and field trips and then pass a series of oral and written exams
before getting a license. Tour guiding without a license is a crime, subject to
fines and (in theory) jail time. Virtually every tour guide in the country is
an independent contractor and finds work either by advertising or, mostly, by
word of mouth and referrals. To be accepted into tour guide school, one must
have a certain level of fluency in Hebrew, officially the Bet-+ level of ulpan.
Rabbi Ackerson attended ulpan as did almost all new olim and passed at the
required level or above. Although he is not fluent enough for guiding a group
of Israelis, he used his Hebrew mostly to speak with the bus driver, hotels, and
venues, etc.
The guide courses only start once
or twice a year, and it was hashgacha pratit that Rabbi Ackerson was
able to finish ulpan and receive his grade immediately, since the course began
the following week. The class was supposed to start the month before but yad
Hashem had it delayed so that he could start and not wait six to 12 months.
Even with Covid, he was able to finish the course and complete the exams. Rabbi
Ackerson loves guiding people in Israel (and Eastern Europe as well) and
sharing the beauty and wonders of Eretz Yisrael in addition to its history and
religious sites. “The Tanach comes alive here, and one can walk in the
footsteps of the greatest personalities in Jewish history and life,” he says. “All
Jews need to embrace Israel as home, and guides help their tour members come to
that realization. When guiding, there are some great connecting moments with
tour participants. Right now, what Israel needs are tourists, ones that hire
tour guides! Between Covid and the war, business has been very slow. Hope to
see you all in Israel soon!” Contact information: Licensed Israel Tour Guide
#14475; 410-375-5363 U.S. cell and WhatsApp. Israel cell: 054- 567-2858.
To sum up, the door to Eretz Yisrael
is open to all Jews from around the world. There are varied opportunities for everyone
who arrives, even for those who come at retirement age. Yes, there are numerous
challenges, but there are obstacles wherever one may be. When giving Avram the
test to go to Eretz Yisrael, Hashem said to Avram, “Lech lecha,”
Go for you. We await your arrival!
