Program brings grandparents and grandchildren to Israel

"It's really an incomparable initiative by the Jewish Agency which fits in our wider activity to enhance Israel's central place for the younger generation."

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
Updated: JANUARY 1, 2019 15:23
Chairman of the Jewish Agency Isaac Herzog with the participants of the program "Operation Granny" (photo credit: JEWISH AGENCY)
Chairman of the Jewish Agency Isaac Herzog with the participants of the program "Operation Granny"
(photo credit: JEWISH AGENCY)
The Jewish Agency launched a program that brought Jewish grandchildren in a joint tour with their grandparents to Israel.
Aimed at girls and boys from the ages 10 to 12, the visit to Israel was the culmination of a year-long program where the participants visited parts of the country, including a trip to the Negev, climbing Masada, placing notes at the Western Wall, and purchasing their first tallits at the Mahane Yehuda market in Jerusalem.
The 36 participants from the US also had the opportunity to stay at the homes of the Israeli grandmothers that they have met virtually during the program.
The visit ended with a meeting with the Chairman of the Jewish Agency Isaac Herzog, who talked about the influence of his grandfather, Rabbi Yitzhak Halevi Herzog on his life.
"This "Operation Granny" creates a unique intergenerational  moment where grandchildren born after the establishment of the Jewish state arrive in their historical homeland together with their grandparents who remember the struggle for a sovereign, independent state," said Herzog.
"It's really an incomparable initiative by the Jewish Agency which fits in our wider activity to enhance Israel's central place for the younger generation, for those who live overseas and do not naturally feel the immediate connection to their homeland," he said.
The program's name is G2: Global Intergenerational Initiative which is a new initiative of the Partnership Unit in the Jewish Agency for Israel
The program was based on research revealing the impact of grandparents on building the identity of their grandchildren. Dr. Ruth Nemzoff, an expert on grandparenting and intergenerational relations, accompanied the tour in Israel, conducting workshops on the subject.