Shluchim Bring Israel Home with CKids Tu B’Shevat Club

Chabad Houses around the world held CKids Tu B’Shevat events that brought kids closer than ever to Eretz Hakodesh.

It’s been many months since most of us have visited Israel, but the latest CKids club managed to tour six different iconic Israel sites—without leaving the neighborhood. The Tu B’Shvat club, called “Fruit at the Shuk,” was an interactive experience centered around Tu B’Shvat while bringing kids closer to their homeland.

“We wanted to totally transport kids, to feel like they were somewhere completely new,” explains Rabbi Zalmy Loewenthal, director of Ckids, the organization that produces the clubs for Chabad houses around the world. “Tu B’Shvat is an important time to connect to Eretz Yisroel, and something many Hebrew School parents are passionate about.”

“Please fasten your seatbelts and prepare for takeoff,” the club’s welcome video announced. From the mystical mountains of Tzfat, where kids create Kabbalah-style Hebrew letter art, to the buzzing shuk of Tel Aviv, where kids practiced “bargaining” for fruit skewer materials, participants were on their toes throughout the club. Some Hebrew schools even set up “stewardesses” to walk up and down the “aisle” of the plane handing out snacks and beverages for a true in-flight experience.

“The event really connected us all to Israel in a major way,” says Rivkie Tenenboim, director of the Jewish Kids Club director in Hewlett, NY. “Our children had a unique Israel experience that was memorable and fun! Kids all went home talking about it!”

CKids is an initiative that inspires children to make a meaningful impact in their communities through educational programs exploring the richness of Judaism. The uniqueness of the Ckids Clubs is that it seamlessly integrates quality education and simple fun. So Jewish kids could learn about Yomim Tovim in a completely immersive way without ever feeling like they are being lectured to or sitting in a classroom.

“Jewish children are growing up in a world where there is increasing confusion surrounding Eretz Yisroel, explains Rabbi Moshe Kotlarsky, vice chairman of Merkos L’Inyonei Chinuch, “one of our goals with this Club was to have the kids learn of their eternal connection as Yidden to the land of Israel.”