Page 34 - issue
P. 34
Embassy Row
living in Israel. I love the food and I love the people. I love the
hustle and bustle of the Jerusalem neighborhood we call
home (when we aren’t living here in the U.S.), and I love the
quiet and the solitude you encounter when you drive out to
Harei Yehuda. Most of all, I love that my children are growing
up steeped in Jewish history, and I love that I am raising them
at the heart of the Jewish future. I feel very fortunate and very
blessed that my life took the unexpected turn that it did.
WWW: What is your role as the ambassador’s wife? Are you
expected to participate in any aspect of your husband’s job?
Is it formal or informal?
RD: The wife of an ambassador is not actually an employee
of the Israeli Embassy, but I obviously try to do whatever I
can to help my husband represent Israel here in the U.S.
There are events that an ambassador’s wife is encouraged to
attend, like official state functions, and many of these events
I’ve also wanted to attend, like the Prime Minister’s historic
speech to Congress last year. Beyond that, we host dinners
(and breakfasts and lunches!) at our home pretty regularly,
and we also go to various functions around town.
There’s an international women’s club that the wife of the
Israeli ambassador has traditionally been a part of, so I try to
attend their events, and I really enjoy meeting with various
women’s groups to discuss the situation in Israel or to hear
from them about the challenges they are facing, so I do that
as well. All of that said, in addition to being the wife of Israel’s
Ambassador. I am also the mother of five small children
(b”H), and my kids have always been a priority for me. I try to
give as much as I can whenever I can, but juggling it all is def-
initely a challenge.
WWW: What’s it like to hobnob with the “great ones”?
Would you describe it as interesting, scary or exciting?
RD: If by “great ones” you mean famous people, I’ve definite-
ly met my share, and it’s been interesting, scary, and exciting,
all rolled into one! We hosted Secretary of State John Kerry
for a seder two years back, and it was really fun to watch him
hide the afikoman from our kids. At one of our Yom
Ha’atzmaut events, Vice President Biden spoke. And this past
January, on International Holocaust Memorial Day, my hus-
band and I had the honor of hosting President Obama at our
Embassy.
Being a family with young children, we especially enjoy
having guests on Shabbat, and those guests are often sena-
tors or members of Congress, prominent Jewish leaders, or
businesspeople. And of course, sometimes our guests are
prominent Israelis – like the Israeli Defense Minister and
even, on one occasion, Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz. One of my
favorite events was the one we held to celebrate Hispanic
Heritage Month, during which the noted Israeli singer David
Broza performed on our front lawn!
But while these events can often be interesting and fun
30 u www.wherewhatwhen.com u
living in Israel. I love the food and I love the people. I love the
hustle and bustle of the Jerusalem neighborhood we call
home (when we aren’t living here in the U.S.), and I love the
quiet and the solitude you encounter when you drive out to
Harei Yehuda. Most of all, I love that my children are growing
up steeped in Jewish history, and I love that I am raising them
at the heart of the Jewish future. I feel very fortunate and very
blessed that my life took the unexpected turn that it did.
WWW: What is your role as the ambassador’s wife? Are you
expected to participate in any aspect of your husband’s job?
Is it formal or informal?
RD: The wife of an ambassador is not actually an employee
of the Israeli Embassy, but I obviously try to do whatever I
can to help my husband represent Israel here in the U.S.
There are events that an ambassador’s wife is encouraged to
attend, like official state functions, and many of these events
I’ve also wanted to attend, like the Prime Minister’s historic
speech to Congress last year. Beyond that, we host dinners
(and breakfasts and lunches!) at our home pretty regularly,
and we also go to various functions around town.
There’s an international women’s club that the wife of the
Israeli ambassador has traditionally been a part of, so I try to
attend their events, and I really enjoy meeting with various
women’s groups to discuss the situation in Israel or to hear
from them about the challenges they are facing, so I do that
as well. All of that said, in addition to being the wife of Israel’s
Ambassador. I am also the mother of five small children
(b”H), and my kids have always been a priority for me. I try to
give as much as I can whenever I can, but juggling it all is def-
initely a challenge.
WWW: What’s it like to hobnob with the “great ones”?
Would you describe it as interesting, scary or exciting?
RD: If by “great ones” you mean famous people, I’ve definite-
ly met my share, and it’s been interesting, scary, and exciting,
all rolled into one! We hosted Secretary of State John Kerry
for a seder two years back, and it was really fun to watch him
hide the afikoman from our kids. At one of our Yom
Ha’atzmaut events, Vice President Biden spoke. And this past
January, on International Holocaust Memorial Day, my hus-
band and I had the honor of hosting President Obama at our
Embassy.
Being a family with young children, we especially enjoy
having guests on Shabbat, and those guests are often sena-
tors or members of Congress, prominent Jewish leaders, or
businesspeople. And of course, sometimes our guests are
prominent Israelis – like the Israeli Defense Minister and
even, on one occasion, Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz. One of my
favorite events was the one we held to celebrate Hispanic
Heritage Month, during which the noted Israeli singer David
Broza performed on our front lawn!
But while these events can often be interesting and fun
30 u www.wherewhatwhen.com u
