fbpx
Category

June 6, 2012

Philanthropy project puts teens in charge

Solly Hess, West Coast regional director of the National Conference of Synagogue Youth (NCSY), was looking for ways to get Jewish teenagers motivated about charitable giving last summer. With the help of Brandon Lurie, a YULA Boys student and NCSY regional board member, he came up with a project that would eventually make an impact on youth as well as the local Jewish community: the Teen Philanthropy Movement.

Turning tragedy into prevention

Agoura High School senior Brian Hertz was shaken when a student at New Community Jewish High School died in a car accident in February 2010.

Finding common ground

Shalhevet journalism teacher Joelle Keene says that Leila Miller, editor-in-chief of the school\’s newspaper, The Boiling Point, has set a high standard for journalism, integrity and optimism amid complex human relations.

Healing others, and herself

Almost every day, Marissa Meyer, an 18-year-old senior at Agoura High School, heads out to the stable where her riding teacher rehabilitates abused horses. There she works with her 15-year-old gelding, Lucky. Helping to heal him after his difficult life at a dude ranch has been one of her passions for the last seven years and has also helped spur her interest in physical therapy and sports medicine in humans.

Working toward ‘never again’

Milken Community High School senior Leah Gluck is dedicated to raising awareness about genocide, even though it seems so distant and unsolvable.

Building a diplomatic resume at home, abroad

David Shalom wants to broker a final status peace agreement between Israelis and Palestinians. While this goal may seem lofty, the YULA student has already taken big steps in pursuit of this dream.

A real page-turner

Corinne Kentor may be coming of age in the iPad and Kindle era, but she feels most at home surrounded by books. The more classic the volumes, the better. It\’s \”Candide\” and \”Don Quixote\” that thrill this New Community Jewish High School (NCJHS) senior, who lights up when she discusses the works of Shakespeare or the Brontë sisters.

Sometimes, less is more

In her junior year, Oakwood senior Katherine Bernstein spent two weeks in Sierra Leone with the North Hollywood school\’s immersion program. Amid carrying buckets of cement for a new school and helping to paint a map of the world in its library, she was struck by a major difference between life in Southern California and the West African nation.

It’s all about the kids

When his late grandmother was first diagnosed with terminal cancer three years ago, Jason Aftalion was moved by the volunteers who visited her at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. \”I was so touched by how they talked to her and spent time with her, so she wouldn\’t be lonely,\” said Aftalion, a Persian-American senior at Milken Community High School.

More news and opinions than at a
Shabbat dinner, right in your inbox.

More news and opinions than at a Shabbat dinner, right in your inbox.

More news and opinions than at a Shabbat dinner, right in your inbox.