Family Stories

Fifty years ago I was part of the Bnei Akiva Hachsharah - from the UK and from Scandinavia - who spent a year on Kibbutz Lavi - a kibbutz in the Galilee originally established in 1948 by immigrants from the UK, many of whom had arrived as kindertransport chidlren before the War.  

Back in 1974-75, we were 26 people from the UK and 19 from all the Scandinavian countries.

Of the 45, three unfortunately are no longer alive, 31 of them live in Israel (most of them from way back then, with a few recent retirees) with an approximate 750-800 children, grandchildren and some great grandchildren - almost all of whom are in Israel.

In those days it was much more common for people who spent a year on either Bnei Akiva or Habonim Hachshara programmes to either stay in Israel, or return within a  few years after completing their university studies back home.

This past week (after two cancellations due to the war) we had a 50 year reunion on Kibbutz Lavi.

In honour of the occasion we produced a booklet with a lot of old and current photos and documents, much nostalgia remembering the Kibbutz and Israel as it was fifty years ago, and a biography of each and every participant.

Amongst the greetings for the occasion, there was a letter from the President of Israel, Isaac Herzog.

The reunion was attended by half of the people (along with their spouses) - with one coming especially from the UK.

Many of us have now retired, or are on the way to retirement. All of us have had succesful lives in Israel, in a diverse range of professions, and all are involved in some form of voluntary work on behalf of society.

We live throughout the country from the north to the south and from the "sea to the river" in kibbutzim, other settlements and in the towns (especially Ranana and Jerusalem). We have different social and political views but are proud of what we have collectively achieved during this period.