Earlier this month, NEXT: A Division of Birthright Israel Foundation launched its High Holidays Initiative as a continuing commitment for connecting young Jewish adults both nationally and locally with the Jewish community. With a newly enhanced interactive map, it is now easier than ever to locate upcoming High Holiday services and events.
“Birthrighters wanted to learn more about existing opportunities,” Morlie Levin, NEXT CEO, said as the reason behind this interactive map.
According to Levin, approximately 20,000 people go on Birthright Israel’s annual 10-day summer trip to Israel and return with a renewed, enlivened desire to connect to their Jewish roots. Many seek out existing communal opportunities with moods and motivations further fortified in light of the upcoming High Holidays. This makes the interactive online map a handy resource.
Although this is the third year NEXT has established an online map for upcoming High Holidays, improvements are made annually. In addition to filtering events regionally, this year’s map also filters other criterion including event type. Searches yield information about egalitarian services, renewals, LGBT-friendly events, interfaith family services and several other opportunities. High Holiday service descriptions are provided along with first-time offerings of small subsidies and resources for hosting Rosh Hashanah meals and Yom Kippur break-fasts.
The map currently lists 340 events spanning 40 states and 180 cities. There are five events listed for Baltimore and nine for Maryland. Numbers are expected to grow in coming weeks.
NEXT is known for three objectives: connecting young people to meaningful Jewish opportunities; consulting with local communities, organizations and individuals to engage young Jewish adults; and catalyzing engagement. To learn more about NEXT’s High Holiday Initiative and to access the interactive map, visit birthrightisrael.com and enter “High Holiday Initiative” in the search bar.
