Partnership2Gether
Yoav-Lehigh Valley

What if there was a way for you to connect with Israel without getting on a plane? What if there was a warm bed and a friendly face waiting for you when you do take that trip?


There are many ways to take part and build your own connections that can last a lifetime. 

  • Join the committee

    The Partnership2Gether committee is involved regularly in finding new ways to create connections between our communities.

More about the Partnership

Partnership2Gether, a program of the Jewish Agency for Israel, connects the Jewish community of the Lehigh Valley with residents of the Yoav Regional Council in Israel. We view these links as a crucial factor in strengthening our communities, and enhancing their prosperity, both in Israel and at home. We are part of a global network of 45 communities, which are designed to serve as the primary infrastructure for developing a cohesive relationship between the communities of the Jewish people.

 

The partnership initiates face-to-face encounters with members of the Israeli community of Yoav, and with their way of life, encourages the community members to look into, and deepen, their bond with the Jewish people and Israel and serves as an incubator for developing ideas and initiatives in education, Jewish identity and community.


ABOUT YOAV
 

The Yoav Regional Council was established in 1952. It contains 14 communities, primarily kibbutzim and moshavim, and has around 7,000 residents. Its area stretches from Re’em Junction in the north to Kiryat Gat in the south, Beit Govrin to the east and Givati Junction in the west.


ABOUT OUR PROGRAMS
 

Each year, our partnership community sends teens to Camp JCC in the Lehigh Valley and hosts missions and visitors from the Lehigh Valley. The partnership supports a number of projects in Yoav in the fields of Jewish renewal, leadership development and community empowerment. The partnership is headed by a steering committee of volunteers from Yoav communities and volunteers from the Lehigh Valley.

 

Current projects include:

 

  • Teens at Camp JCC: Each summer, the Lehigh Valley hosts four teens from Yoav, who bring Israel to life as counselors at Camp JCC.
     
  • Hevruta: Conducting a monthly lecture series in Yoav communities (eight lectures in all) with leading scholars / public figures, regarding issues of Judaism, Zionism and community.
     
  • Under the Same Moon: Connecting families from Yoav with families at Lehigh Valley religious schools through a shared experience with the book "The Same Moon."  Children write to their "penpals" under guidance from the book and create life-long connections with their family across the ocean.