GIMEL in the US

Adam-Adamah participants in front of the Harry & Rose Samson Family Jewish Community Center in Milwaukee

The Adam-Adamah project, based on tikkun olam, made me think how I can change my life to find more time to do something for others. It showed me that by learning from each other we can improve the world. 
Olga, GIMEL Jewish Student Club Member

From the 11th till the 18th of September, the JCC's GIMEL Jewish Student Club traveled to the USA as a part of Adam-Adamah project. Adam-Adamah is a collaborative environmental conservation project of JCC Krakow, the Harry & Rose Samson Family Jewish Community Center in Milwaukee and the Ginot Ha'Ir Community Council in Jerusalem. Adam Adamah is the result of JCC Global's Amitim-­Fellows Program which connects JCCs across the world. The trip started in Milwaukee, where the group toured the Harry & Rose Samson Family Jewish Community Center. They were surprised to find that some of the members of the senior club had Polish roots and could speak Polish! The GIMEL members and the seniors had a lot to share about Poland and Jewish life in Krakow. On the second day our students went on a one-day trip to Chicago, where they spent the day seeing the most remarkable sights of the city. After this relaxing beginning of the trip, the time for hard work finally began! On the third day all the participants of the Adam-Adamah project hiked through a park to admire Lake Michigan and then went to Rainbow Day Camp where they spent the day picking vegetables and tried outdoor activities such as archery and laser tag. The next day, the vegetables were placed in the food cooperative which provides food for people in need. The students helped prepare and package the food for distribution.

At the Rainbow Day Camp harvesting fresh produce for the Jewish Community Food Pantry.

Volunteering at the Jewish Community Food Pantry in Milwaukee.

Volunteering at the Jewish Community Food Pantry in Milwaukee.

In the evening they joined a conference for young Jewish leaders, and the next day the participants of the project took part in art workshops. Divided into groups, the students were instructed to express common aspects of their Jewish identities. Later they were given a tour around Growing Power, a nonprofit organization and land trust which breeds animals and grows vegetables for sale. Later all the participants of the Adam-Adamah project had a Shabbat dinner at local JCC.

The participants from JCC GIMEL were grateful to have taken part in this project.  Here's what the event meant to them:

The final session the Adam-Adamah project was a unique experience for most of the Polish participants, and for myself as well. It was a week full of hard work and we learned a lot, we found the projects extremely inspiring and we have returned motivated to apply what we learned to help our community in Krakow. 
Asia, GIMEL Jewish Student Club Member

JCC Krakow Executive Director Jonathan Ornstein and JCC Krakow Board Member Edyta Gawron with GIMEL Jewish Student Club members in Milwaukee