Our Vision and Mission

Our Partnership fosters connections between Israelis living in Beit Shemesh and Mateh Yehuda and Jews living in Washington DC and South Africa. Commonly known as P2K, we are part of a global connection that inspires Jews - both in Israel and overseas - to explore and to broaden their connection to the Jewish People and to Israel.

Partnership 2000

* Offers a warm, tangible, face-to-face way of connecting

* Is a two-way street, that helps build community both in Israel and overseas

* Focuses on the creation of relationships and meaning, rather than on welfare and infrastructure.

* Over 30 programs are facilitated annually by our Partnership in the areas of People to People, Next Generation, Economic Development and Community Building. Our programs emphasize building connections, volunteering, & exploring Jewish values. 

The Region and its Population

* Our region serves as a rural oasis between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.

* This is where Samson lived, and where David fought Goliath

* The population of Beit Shemesh ("home of the sun") has grown fourfold to 90,000 over the past 15 years.

* Immigrants from the Former Soviet Union, North America, England, France and Ethiopia joined the veteran poulation who established the city in the early 1950's.

* Mateh Yehuda ("the staff (cane) of Judah") is a regional council comprised of 57 rural communities - mostly moshavim and kibbutzim - with 35,000 residents.

Parternship Activity Highlights

* Over 1000 visitors from Washington and South Africa visit our region every year

* Israeli educators, artists, cyclists, vintners and ethnic cooks bring the inspiring stories of our region to hundreds of community members in DC and S.A. annually

* P2K supported the establishment of the Wine Route, a local network that grew in a decade from 3 to over 30 wineries; and nurtured the development of a cycling infrastructure that draws cyclists in from all over the country

* By twinning six Jewish day schools from Washington and South Africa with schools in our region, P2K has created a platform for educating hundreds of children about Jewish Peoplehood

* Through our volunteer apartment program in Beit Shemesh, overseas volunteers each spend 3 weeks or more in town, in positions such as helping schoolchildren with English, working the land, or tending the elderly.  

* Our student leadership program provides study grants for students in our region, leveraging hundreds of hours of volunteering and community involvement

* P2K is leading the first local implementation of the Israel 15 vision, designed to leapfrog Israel into the top 15 countires in the world in quality of life.