February 2012 Panim el Panim...Night One!

Posted on 02/20/2012 @ 12:56 PM

Read more about the Panim el Panim experience through the eyes of the teen participants.

Yesterday was the first time I came on a Panim el Panim trip and so far I have had loads of fun. We met new people and played ice breakers. After that we learned about people that were homeless and what the word homeless means and how some of them got that way. Most people are homeless because they go into life thinking that they can fend for themselves. With that in mind, they go through many obstacles in their lives and they experience homelessness. Hearing these stories was very touching and it changed my thoughts on how I want to live my life. At about 8:00 we went to see many monuments in Washington. My group Team Goldstein saw the Lincoln monument, memorial, and the Martin Luther King monument.

Ashley Erenburg, Kings Bay Y, Brooklyn, NY

Yesterday we arrived in Washington D.C.! We has an amazing discussion last night with people who have gone through being homeless. We then went on a dazzling, and slightly rainy, tour of the Lincoln, Korean War, MLK Jr. & Vietnam War Memorial. Our first day was great and we have also met many new people an made many new friends.

Annah Walsh Akron, OH.

Today was a good day. After a long 7 hour bus ride the Cleveland delegation finally arrived in Washington D.C. From there all the delegations went to the opening ceremony. We began to learn more about the goals of Panim El Panim and learned about how we identify and define ourselves. It was really interesting. Dinner was good and it also allowed us a chance to socialize with other young, Jewish and idealistic people from around the country. After that we heard stories about the hardships of being homeless from local D.C. natives. Their stories were incredible. We ended the night by taking a tour of D.C. We took a guided exploration of some of Washington DC’s memorials. We were mixed with other groups so we got to meet even more new people. Hopefully tomorrow will be even better than today was!

Sara Shore, Cleveland OH

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Debate, Exploration, Advocacy - Another day in DC

Posted on 12/14/2011 @ 09:25 AM

Read more about the Panim el Panim experience through the eyes of a teen participant, Alex Mendelsohn from Kushner High School (Livingston, NJ).

Tuesday morning Group A had a busy day. First we listened to two interesting speakers on the Arab spring. Then we split up to explore D.C.

My group went first to the botanical garden and saw some replicas of famous monuments and buildings made out of organic materials such as twigs and leaves.

Then we visited the Air and Space Museum and the American History Museum.

Then we returned to the hotel.

Finally, we held a Congressional simulation and voted in favour of the gun show loophole closing act.

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Seeing DC in a New Way

Posted on 12/14/2011 @ 09:10 AM

Read more about the Panim el Panim experience through the eyes of a teen participant, Dean Decter from HAFTR High School (Cedarhurst, NY).

"You have to scan your metro card when getting on. But ALSO when getting off of the metro!"

It was our day to tour DC. There is so much to look for, so much to find, so much to see! But there was no way of seeing it all.

Our group of 4 was walking down "the dirt path" (as we call it), when we met this nice man from Sweden riding a bike, absorbing everything there was to see. Bingo! An idea bloomed in our heads. Let's go rent a bike!

We found our way to the bike rentals, claimed ours and we were on our way. We toured Washington DC in a way that we have never seen it before!

Not only did we go to many of the memorials that there were to visit, but also travelled to many of the museums.

Panim el Panim is all about meeting new people and facing new challenges. But what I did not tell you was that I travelled DC with a new group of people ('new faces') and grew together in an educational and productive way. (Even though a squirrel and I became best friends ;))

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Service During Panim el Panim

Posted on 12/13/2011 @ 09:45 AM

Teens from Rae Kushner Yeshiva High School do service in a DC area food pantry.

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Perspective at Panim el Panim

Posted on 12/12/2011 @ 09:45 AM

Read more about the Panim el Panim experience through the eyes of a teen participant, Joy Srour from Yeshiva of Flatbush (Brooklyn, NY).

Today we arrived in Washington, D.C. full of excitement and eagerness. We heard the powerful, moving stories about the hardships of our speakers from the National Coalition of the Homeless. We now recognize how much we should appreciate what our families have and what we take for granted. Finally we strolled to the White House while making new friends and getting to know everyone. It was a great day and we expect for more learning, memorable experiences and friendships to come.

This is the Place to Keep Up With Panim el Panim and Teen Issue Summits!!