Achuza MAKA,
Community for New Olim in Haifa
Community for New Olim in Haifa
Achuza – The New Community for New Olim in Haifa
“Achuza is most certainly a vibrant and beautiful community with much to offer Olim
Chadasim (and everyone else for that matter). We certainly will follow-up at our end with
inquiries pertaining to housing, employment, educational opportunities, etc.“
“It was simply a great experience, and we will spread the word to other Olim Chadasim
who, like us, are searching for the perfect location in Israel to make their home."
These are just a few examples of the enthusiastic feedback from participants at the recent
Shabbat for Anglo Olim in the Achuza neighborhood atop Mount Carmel in Haifa.
The Shabbat was one of a series of events organized by community members who have
been active in trying keep and attract young Dati families and singles to Achuza.
The Haifa Municipality’s inclusion in the Ministry of Absorption’s “Community Aliyah”
program, which provides additional benefits to new Olim from Western countries, has
provided a significant boost to the campaign.
Fifty two Olim guests, from North America, the UK, South Africa and Australia, came to
Achuza for the Shabbat, sponsored by the local dati community center. For half of the
guests, it was their first acquaintance with the beautiful city of Haifa. The others are Anglo
Olim students at Haifa University and the Technion, including the Technion American
Medical School program, and Olim families and singles who have moved to Haifa and
Achuza in the past year. All the visitors were warmly welcomed by the community
members who hosted them in their homes.
On Friday afternoon, the group toured Haifa on a bus provided by the Municipality. The
guide was a member of the community. The guests were shown the beautiful tourist sights
of Haifa, as well as the sites that are relevant to them as potential residents.
Shabbat activities took place in the “Yisrael Yair” synagogue on Ehud Street in Achuza.
The synagogue donated the use of their facilities and the group joined the members of the
kehilla for tefillot and shiurim. The visiting children were especially welcome at the
children’s tefilla on Shabbat morning, where they were warmly received by the regulars.
Meals were held in the synagogue hall, together with the hosting families, and conducted
in English for the benefit of the guests. On Shabbat afternoon, young families from the
neighborhood joined the group and their hosts for Seudah Shlishit, a shiur, and more
children’s activities, with over 200 people participating.
Special care was taken when matching guests with host families and with the seating at the
meals to ensure that the guests would meet a wide range of the locals and feel welcome
and comfortable, and most importantly, would consider Achuza as a community where
they could make their home in Israel.
The Ahuzaites who took part in the Shabbat were also encouraged by the convivial
community atmosphere and the interest showed by the visitors.
Pictures of this and other community activities can be found at http://picasaweb.google.
com/Ahuzatzachal
A number of the visitors indicated in the feedback received that they are seriously
considering moving to Haifa and have begun looking into employment and housing options.
(The Shabbat was sponsored and aided by the Haifa Municipality, particularly the Strategic
Planning Unit and the Merkaz Kehilati Dati Achuza (MAKA), the Recruitment committee
of Meka, Kehilat “Yisrael Yair”, Garin Tzachal (Tzeirim Chozrim LeAhuza. Thanks to all
who aided in publicizing the event, especially Nefesh B’Nefesh.)
For more information on Achuza and Haifa, see the Haifa Municipality website in
English , or contact us
Dena Slonim, Feb 2 2009
“Achuza is most certainly a vibrant and beautiful community with much to offer Olim
Chadasim (and everyone else for that matter). We certainly will follow-up at our end with
inquiries pertaining to housing, employment, educational opportunities, etc.“
“It was simply a great experience, and we will spread the word to other Olim Chadasim
who, like us, are searching for the perfect location in Israel to make their home."
These are just a few examples of the enthusiastic feedback from participants at the recent
Shabbat for Anglo Olim in the Achuza neighborhood atop Mount Carmel in Haifa.
The Shabbat was one of a series of events organized by community members who have
been active in trying keep and attract young Dati families and singles to Achuza.
The Haifa Municipality’s inclusion in the Ministry of Absorption’s “Community Aliyah”
program, which provides additional benefits to new Olim from Western countries, has
provided a significant boost to the campaign.
Fifty two Olim guests, from North America, the UK, South Africa and Australia, came to
Achuza for the Shabbat, sponsored by the local dati community center. For half of the
guests, it was their first acquaintance with the beautiful city of Haifa. The others are Anglo
Olim students at Haifa University and the Technion, including the Technion American
Medical School program, and Olim families and singles who have moved to Haifa and
Achuza in the past year. All the visitors were warmly welcomed by the community
members who hosted them in their homes.
On Friday afternoon, the group toured Haifa on a bus provided by the Municipality. The
guide was a member of the community. The guests were shown the beautiful tourist sights
of Haifa, as well as the sites that are relevant to them as potential residents.
Shabbat activities took place in the “Yisrael Yair” synagogue on Ehud Street in Achuza.
The synagogue donated the use of their facilities and the group joined the members of the
kehilla for tefillot and shiurim. The visiting children were especially welcome at the
children’s tefilla on Shabbat morning, where they were warmly received by the regulars.
Meals were held in the synagogue hall, together with the hosting families, and conducted
in English for the benefit of the guests. On Shabbat afternoon, young families from the
neighborhood joined the group and their hosts for Seudah Shlishit, a shiur, and more
children’s activities, with over 200 people participating.
Special care was taken when matching guests with host families and with the seating at the
meals to ensure that the guests would meet a wide range of the locals and feel welcome
and comfortable, and most importantly, would consider Achuza as a community where
they could make their home in Israel.
The Ahuzaites who took part in the Shabbat were also encouraged by the convivial
community atmosphere and the interest showed by the visitors.
Pictures of this and other community activities can be found at http://picasaweb.google.
com/Ahuzatzachal
A number of the visitors indicated in the feedback received that they are seriously
considering moving to Haifa and have begun looking into employment and housing options.
(The Shabbat was sponsored and aided by the Haifa Municipality, particularly the Strategic
Planning Unit and the Merkaz Kehilati Dati Achuza (MAKA), the Recruitment committee
of Meka, Kehilat “Yisrael Yair”, Garin Tzachal (Tzeirim Chozrim LeAhuza. Thanks to all
who aided in publicizing the event, especially Nefesh B’Nefesh.)
For more information on Achuza and Haifa, see the Haifa Municipality website in
English , or contact us
Dena Slonim, Feb 2 2009
I was most impressed with the
Shabbat Event. It was well
organized and seamless for the
most part. The bus tour was
FABULOUS! Itai was a real
charm and an excellent tour
guide! The sandwiches and
drinks provided during the bus
tour were a lifesaver! What a
nice touch. The young man (I’
m sorry I don’t remember his
name) who provided the
sandwiches was also very
warm and attentive to our
needs throughout the entire
Shabbat (as was the entire
organizing staff and host
family). A suggestion for
future events might be a map
of the tour route and printed
information on real estate
rental/purchase prices in
Achuza.
The meals at the shul were
delicious and bountiful. We
also very much enjoyed the
opportunity to daven Shacharit,
Minchah, and Ma-ariv with the
congregants. It was simply a
great experience, and we will
spread the word to other Olim
Chadasim who, like us, are
searching for the perfect
location in Israel to make their
home.We will maintain
contact. Thanks again for your
warm and hospitality. Rachel
Leah and Daniel Baerwald
Shabbat Event. It was well
organized and seamless for the
most part. The bus tour was
FABULOUS! Itai was a real
charm and an excellent tour
guide! The sandwiches and
drinks provided during the bus
tour were a lifesaver! What a
nice touch. The young man (I’
m sorry I don’t remember his
name) who provided the
sandwiches was also very
warm and attentive to our
needs throughout the entire
Shabbat (as was the entire
organizing staff and host
family). A suggestion for
future events might be a map
of the tour route and printed
information on real estate
rental/purchase prices in
Achuza.
The meals at the shul were
delicious and bountiful. We
also very much enjoyed the
opportunity to daven Shacharit,
Minchah, and Ma-ariv with the
congregants. It was simply a
great experience, and we will
spread the word to other Olim
Chadasim who, like us, are
searching for the perfect
location in Israel to make their
home.We will maintain
contact. Thanks again for your
warm and hospitality. Rachel
Leah and Daniel Baerwald
Thank you so much for your
kind words, we had a really
fantastic Shabbat meeting
everyone and getting to know
more about the neighborhood
through our hosts and others.
It was a great opportunity to
see a different side of Haifa
and to become more involved
in the Dati community up
here…..
Thanks again!
Oren & Tanya Kanner
kind words, we had a really
fantastic Shabbat meeting
everyone and getting to know
more about the neighborhood
through our hosts and others.
It was a great opportunity to
see a different side of Haifa
and to become more involved
in the Dati community up
here…..
Thanks again!
Oren & Tanya Kanner
We had a great time. The
hospitality of the congregation
was outstanding. …..I do not
believe I have ever felt so
welcomed by a group of people
or made to feel like I was
really needed and wanted in a
community with such sincerity.
Truly as I meet so many people
willing to help me with this
process, I can say I feel greatly
empowered that it can happen
in a positive and maybe even
relatively quick time. Even my
friend Cynthia made the
comment of the power of
community you all have there.
Though she was just
accompanying me through this
journey, she was welcomed
and made to feel at home.
Look forward to seeing you
soon.
Am Yisroel Chai!
Esther Shoshana Wolf
hospitality of the congregation
was outstanding. …..I do not
believe I have ever felt so
welcomed by a group of people
or made to feel like I was
really needed and wanted in a
community with such sincerity.
Truly as I meet so many people
willing to help me with this
process, I can say I feel greatly
empowered that it can happen
in a positive and maybe even
relatively quick time. Even my
friend Cynthia made the
comment of the power of
community you all have there.
Though she was just
accompanying me through this
journey, she was welcomed
and made to feel at home.
Look forward to seeing you
soon.
Am Yisroel Chai!
Esther Shoshana Wolf
Kol HaKavod and thank you for
organizing such a wonderful
Shabbat. A lot of effort
obviously went in to the
preparations and It was great to
hear positive responses about
people considering Achuza and
also to strengthen the bond
between people who have
already moved. It was a very
important event on many levels.
All the best,
Shushanna
organizing such a wonderful
Shabbat. A lot of effort
obviously went in to the
preparations and It was great to
hear positive responses about
people considering Achuza and
also to strengthen the bond
between people who have
already moved. It was a very
important event on many levels.
All the best,
Shushanna
Thank yous
Thank you all for organizing
such a wonderful shabbaton.
We really enjoyed spending
time in Achuza and meeting so
many new couples. Everyone
was so friendly and happy to be
there, and they had such
incredible stories of aliyah. It
was really inspiring. I was also
amazed at the level of thought
and detail which went into
planning, and it made it such
an enjoyable experience. I
didn't even have to worry about
what to do with my son, which
was such a relief.
So thank you all very much for
including us. All the best,
Yael Schuster and family
such a wonderful shabbaton.
We really enjoyed spending
time in Achuza and meeting so
many new couples. Everyone
was so friendly and happy to be
there, and they had such
incredible stories of aliyah. It
was really inspiring. I was also
amazed at the level of thought
and detail which went into
planning, and it made it such
an enjoyable experience. I
didn't even have to worry about
what to do with my son, which
was such a relief.
So thank you all very much for
including us. All the best,
Yael Schuster and family
Jared and I wanted to thank
you again for the lovely
weekend. We had a very nice
time, and the people are very
warm and friendly. It meant a
lot to us to be welcomed into
your community so warmly.
Thank you so much again for
organizing the shabbaton. Take
care, and have a great day
Rachel Levy Sarfin
you again for the lovely
weekend. We had a very nice
time, and the people are very
warm and friendly. It meant a
lot to us to be welcomed into
your community so warmly.
Thank you so much again for
organizing the shabbaton. Take
care, and have a great day
Rachel Levy Sarfin
We would like to express our
gratitude for having us as your
guests this past Shabbat in
your beautiful community in
Haifa. We enjoyed an
exceptional Shabbat. Everyone
was absolutely wonderful - the
organizing staff, the other
visiting families, our host
family, and the Yisrael Yair
Shul Community. Achuza is
most certainly a vibrant and
beautiful community with
much to offer Olim Chadasim
(and everyone else for that
matter). We certainly will
follow-up at our end with
inquiries pertaining to housing,
employment, educational
opportunities, etc. We also
would like to express our
gratitude to the Rubin family
for their hospitality, words of
encouragement, and the many
“tips”.
gratitude for having us as your
guests this past Shabbat in
your beautiful community in
Haifa. We enjoyed an
exceptional Shabbat. Everyone
was absolutely wonderful - the
organizing staff, the other
visiting families, our host
family, and the Yisrael Yair
Shul Community. Achuza is
most certainly a vibrant and
beautiful community with
much to offer Olim Chadasim
(and everyone else for that
matter). We certainly will
follow-up at our end with
inquiries pertaining to housing,
employment, educational
opportunities, etc. We also
would like to express our
gratitude to the Rubin family
for their hospitality, words of
encouragement, and the many
“tips”.
FROM my blog…..ON
Thursday I headed out in the
afternoon to spectacular Haifa
on the bay. The unbelievable
beauty of Haifa's topography--
the teal Mediterranean
coastline and beaches, the
gorgeous Ba'hai Gardens, the
sloping mountain city and
rolling forest hills--all comes
together to provide a simply
magical setting.The line
"Unbelievable Beauty" …
came to mind several times
over the weekend: during a
Friday bus tour of Haifa as
part of a Shabbaton arranged
by Haifa's Yisrael Yair
Synagogue and the Haifa
municipality in order to
welcome and encourage
Anglos to join this modern
Orthodox community. We
stopped on the tour at the top
of the Ba'hai gardens. Our tour
guide Itai taught me that what
I thought was a nuclear power
plant in Haifa is actually an oil
refinery and pointed out that
Rosh Ha'Nikra, the site with
spectacular rock formations at
Israel's border with Lebanon,
is visible from Haifa. It wasn't
clear enough to see Mt.
Hermon (Israel's highest point
and sole skiing destination),
but still plenty unforgettable.
The weekend wrapped up with
a trip to the observatory at the
30th floor of Haifa University's
Eshkol Tower--the magic was
unprecedented, as the
morning's rain cleared for a
rainbow.
The lovely Shabbaton showed
me a very bright (it seemed that
all the Americans there went to
M.I.T. and ended up at Haifa's
Technion, known as Israel's M.
I.T.) and warmly welcoming
Yisrael Yair community in the
Achuza neighborhood. My
hosts, the Mevorachs, were just
the best.
I fell back in love with Haifa
over the weekend, having not
been there since August 2007
and not for a significant
amount of time since January
2005. I love this country more
than ever now; despite, or
maybe even precisely because
of the war and the hotly-
contested nature of this place.
Eric Samuels
Thursday I headed out in the
afternoon to spectacular Haifa
on the bay. The unbelievable
beauty of Haifa's topography--
the teal Mediterranean
coastline and beaches, the
gorgeous Ba'hai Gardens, the
sloping mountain city and
rolling forest hills--all comes
together to provide a simply
magical setting.The line
"Unbelievable Beauty" …
came to mind several times
over the weekend: during a
Friday bus tour of Haifa as
part of a Shabbaton arranged
by Haifa's Yisrael Yair
Synagogue and the Haifa
municipality in order to
welcome and encourage
Anglos to join this modern
Orthodox community. We
stopped on the tour at the top
of the Ba'hai gardens. Our tour
guide Itai taught me that what
I thought was a nuclear power
plant in Haifa is actually an oil
refinery and pointed out that
Rosh Ha'Nikra, the site with
spectacular rock formations at
Israel's border with Lebanon,
is visible from Haifa. It wasn't
clear enough to see Mt.
Hermon (Israel's highest point
and sole skiing destination),
but still plenty unforgettable.
The weekend wrapped up with
a trip to the observatory at the
30th floor of Haifa University's
Eshkol Tower--the magic was
unprecedented, as the
morning's rain cleared for a
rainbow.
The lovely Shabbaton showed
me a very bright (it seemed that
all the Americans there went to
M.I.T. and ended up at Haifa's
Technion, known as Israel's M.
I.T.) and warmly welcoming
Yisrael Yair community in the
Achuza neighborhood. My
hosts, the Mevorachs, were just
the best.
I fell back in love with Haifa
over the weekend, having not
been there since August 2007
and not for a significant
amount of time since January
2005. I love this country more
than ever now; despite, or
maybe even precisely because
of the war and the hotly-
contested nature of this place.
Eric Samuels
Scroll down to read about the
Special events scheduled by the
Merkaz Kehilati Dati Achuza (MAKA) –
The Achuza Orthodox Community Center
Special events scheduled by the
Merkaz Kehilati Dati Achuza (MAKA) –
The Achuza Orthodox Community Center
Upcoming activities and announcements
סדב"
Dear Friends,
In the name of the Talia Trust committee and of the children whom the Trust helps, I
would like to thank all of you who found time last Tuesday to join us at our very
successful annual Family Fun Succot event. The range of activities seemed just right for
the age-groups of people who came, as you can see from the initial photographs on the
website: www.taliatrust.org . A video will be added shortly. We look forward to receiving
your ideas for improvements before we begin planning next year’s event.
Special thanks to those who were unable to attend but, even so, sent a contribution. Every
additional shekel you give the Trust means we can help more of these children and we
are really most grateful. Best wishes for a successful and healthy year, Marilyn Hyman
Dear Friends,
In the name of the Talia Trust committee and of the children whom the Trust helps, I
would like to thank all of you who found time last Tuesday to join us at our very
successful annual Family Fun Succot event. The range of activities seemed just right for
the age-groups of people who came, as you can see from the initial photographs on the
website: www.taliatrust.org . A video will be added shortly. We look forward to receiving
your ideas for improvements before we begin planning next year’s event.
Special thanks to those who were unable to attend but, even so, sent a contribution. Every
additional shekel you give the Trust means we can help more of these children and we
are really most grateful. Best wishes for a successful and healthy year, Marilyn Hyman
Om May 10-11, Yom HaZikaron
On May 12, 7: 30, Festive prayer in the presence of Rabbi Prof
Danny Hershkowicz and Yona Yahav mayor of Haifa, with the
Hazanut Forum and Udi Ullman, Great Synagogue, Hadar,
Haifa
On May 12, 7: 30, Festive prayer in the presence of Rabbi Prof
Danny Hershkowicz and Yona Yahav mayor of Haifa, with the
Hazanut Forum and Udi Ullman, Great Synagogue, Hadar,
Haifa
