The main goal of the visit was to determine how to get Israelis personally involved in the mission of Federation. In Israel, many people volunteer and help others, but they are not accustomed to setting agendas, creating programs, or rallying support for change in current social action programs. Instead, Israelis typically allow trained professionals to do the vast majority of the work.

Volunteer leadership of social action programs is critical to the success of the JFGA. From the moment we met the Israelis at the airport, they saw how we work as a team, seamlessly making sure that their needs were met.

Another goal of the trip was to see how we as a Jewish community deal with our own issues. We took the group to two Jewish day schools, the Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta, Jewish Educational Services, the Selig Center, the Weinstein Center, the Cohen Home and other major centers of Atlanta's Jewish life. They had the opportunity to worship at many of the local synagogues and participated in the Federation's Super Sunday telethon. Each participant stayed with a local host, attending Shabbat dinners, a Thrashers hockey game, a middle school wrestling match – all to get a taste of how we, American Jews, live our lives. And, of course, they saw some historic Atlanta sites – the State Capitol, the Martin Luther King Center, CNN, and Centennial Olympic Park.

Working together with our Partner communities in Israel has always included many visits from Atlanta and a few select visits from Israeli VIPs. This trip was not educators meeting with educators, or campers, or the mayors. This trip consisted of volunteer leaders, the future of our Partnership communities, meeting with us as peers. It was beyond stimulating, beyond exciting, beyond any expectations. This trip was the future, here today, meeting and understanding our needs, our lives, our hopes and aspirations. We became one united extended family – the truest form of Kesher. For further information about Partnership 2000, contact Francine Hazan, Partnership 2000 coordinator, at (404) 870-1611.

Partnership 2000 received $200,000 from JFGA in FY04.