BEIT SHEAN REGION BRANCH HOSTS THE ANNUAL CHANUKA NATIONAL CONFERENCE OF NOAR LENOAR
by Hanan Singer

More than 200 teens from throughout Israel attended the Noar LeNoar national Chanuka conference hosted this year by the Beit Shean region branch of the Cleveland-Beit Shean region partnership 2000 Noar LeNoar youth movement. Partnership 2000 is a Jewish Agency's program that unites the Beit Shean City, the Beit Shean Valley Regional Council and the Jewish Community of Cleveland, in programs of people to people, economic development, leadership development, strengthening Jewish identity and more.

The conference, held last Monday December 24 at the Mofet Theater in the heart of Beit Shean, featured traditional Noar LeNoar ceremonies, speeches by dignitaries and local government leaders, and a live concert by Israeli pop artist Eviatar Banai. The day's activities began when four buses full of Noar LeNoar youth descended on Beit Shean, coming from such places as Holon, Rishon Letzion, and Kiryat Motzkin, and joined the 40 members of the Beit Shean region branch in volunteer activities around the city, at such sites as Nitzan, the neighborhood watch center, and others.

The high point of the day came when all the Noar LeNoar youth reconvened at 1:00 p.m. at the Mofet theatre for the annual Chanuka convention. The local Noar LeNoar teens decorated the theatre ahead of time, led by Tzvia Sheli, Partnership 2000's Noar LeNoar coordinator, and Nathalie Ovadya, the youth chair of the Beit Shean region branch. Posters proclaiming the youth movement's theme of the year, "This Youth Is Me" (focus on youth in distress), were strewn outside the theatre and across the backdrop of the stage.

Pini Kabalo, mayor of Beit Shean, addressed the convention first, and welcomed all the assembled teens to the city. "In Beit Shean, we put education first," he said. "We are working hard to improve the city's education system, and to create a brighter future for the youth of our region." Kabalo also described the efforts being made to improve local employment opportunities, which will serve the youth of the region in the future.

Yael Shaltieli, Mayor of the Beit Shean Valley Regional Council, echoed Kabalo's message about regional investment in youth programs, and praised the unique aspects of the local Noar LeNoar branch. "The Beit Shean region Noar LeNoar includes residents of the city and the surrounding settlements," she said. "The youth of Noar LeNoar are making a real contribution to the region, and I am certain that they will continue to do so in the future." She asked the convention participants to spread the Beit Shean region message of regional cooperation to the rest of the country.

Effi Shtentzler, mayor of Givattayim and chairman of the Noar LeNoar high council, thanked Shaltieli and Kabalo, as well as the staff of Partnership 2000, for hosting the event. Shtentzler said it was only natural to hold this year's Chanuka conference in Beit Shean. "Noar LeNoar supports youth self-empowerment, especially in the outlying areas of the country," he said. "In recent years, issues concerning young people have been at the top of the list of priorities in the Beit Shean region."

Shtenzler also praised the partnership that exists in the Beit Shean region Noar LeNoar between teens from the city and the regional council settlements. "On this last day of Chanuka, I hope and pray that the brilliant glow of cooperation and activity shining from Beit Shean lights up all of Israel."

Sagi Melamed, Director of the Cleveland-Beit Shean region Partnership 2000, also extolled the local Noar LeNoar branch, saying how within the three years of the group's establishment, it had become one of the leading branches of the national youth movement. The Beit Shean Noar LeNoar is distinctive, he noted, pointing out its unique characteristics, such as the regional youth participation and the vibrant cooperation with youth from Cleveland, Beit Shean's partnered city in the Jewish Agency Partnership 2000 program. The Beit Shean region branch, Melamed noted, has also undergone much hardship. Two of the recent graduates of the branch, Elad Batzon and Dvir Reshef, were killed in army service, and Nathalie Ovadya, the current youth chair, was badly wounded in a terrorist attack.

40 local youths participated in the day's events, and Tzvia Sheli noted that the local branch numbers nearly 100 youth members. Although organizing the conference was a big effort that involved many of the local Noar LeNoar members, she noted that the group's regular weekly activities are the real highlight of the movement. Such activities include community volunteerism, teens helping and guiding other teens, and maintaining contact with youth from Cleveland.

It's clear that not only the adults involved are enthusiastic about Noar LeNoar in Beit Shean. Nathalie Ovadya, the current chair of the local branch, says that she loves being involved in the youth group.

"Volunteering and working with other people is really satisfying," she said. "Noar LeNoar is a special youth movement, in which we focus on four major goals: Helping others, self-leadership, love for the land of Israel, and connection with the Diaspora. "The activities of Noar LeNoar bring our group together for worthwhile causes. Once we get kids involved, they really feel they're doing something important."

Tevet 5762 - January 2002