Hasbara Year Book |
Mat Abramsky
Mat Abramsky was born and raised in the small but vibrant Jewish community in Kingston, ON Canada. Mat completed his undergraduate degree at the University of Western Ontario’s Ivey School of Business where he studied marketing and operations. At Western, Mat was an active Hillel member and founder of the Israel Advocacy Committee, one of the most active and successful Canadian campus Israel clubs. During his undergraduate studies, Mat was a participant on the [3rd] Hasbara Fellowships trip to Israel, and was later a madrich on two additional HF trips, as well as a speaker at various HF seminars around Canada and the US. Mat later completed his MBA and Masters’ in City Planning at the University of Pennsylvania, and he now lives in London, UK, working as a real estate investment professional.
Make an anniversary gift in honor of Mat. Patrick Amar Patrick Amar started his role with Hasbara Fellowships as a student
activist at Concordia University in Montreal, later moving to New York to help establish their national office. He has staffed over 50 missions to Israel, including Birthright, Hasbara Fellowships, the Jerusalem Fellowships, and Honest Reporting. Since making Aliyah in 2006, he has served as a consultant for staff members to support and assist students from around the world in their quest to stand up for Israel and fight bias and anti-Israel propaganda on campuses. Patrick lives in the Old City of Jerusalem with his wife, Julie, and their three children. He is currently a licensed tour guide in Israel and studies at Aish. Patrick staffs programs in Israel and loves lecturing whenever he can. Make an anniversary gift in honor of Patrick. Josh Benchetrit
Josh was born in Toronto, Canada in a typical Jewish-Moroccan household. Attending Jewish elementary and high school, he acquired a strong Jewish identity. Josh is very passionate about Israel, which led him to his involvement in Hasbara Fellowships. Along with a few friends, Josh established the pro-Israel student organization, Hasbara @ York in 2007, which remains stronger than ever today. After university Josh began his career in accounting at Ernst & Young, and later received my CA/CPA designation in 2012.
Make an anniversary gift in honor of Josh. Noah Kadish
Noah’s Israel activism began early in his undergraduate career, as a member and as the Promotions Coordinator for Israel On Campus, at the University of Western Ontario. He is currently completing his third and final year of study at Osgoode Hall Law School, where he served as the Co-President of the Jewish Law Students Association. The highlight of his university activism experience was taking part in Hasbara Fellowships which has benefited him greatly. He is truly appreciative for this experience, and hopes to continue to be an active Hasbara alumnus.
Make an anniversary gift in honor of Noah. Lian Kimia
Lian Kimia was born
in Tel Aviv, Israel and moved to LA with her family at the age of 7. For much
of her youth and adolescence, Lian lost touch with her Israeli side and always
felt as though something was missing. It was not until the summer of 2006, when
Lian was 19, that her first real trip back to Israel with Birthright and
Hasbara Fellowships would change all that. Lian's love for her country was
reawakened.
Since that summer, her life became dedicated to Israel. Lian has traveled to Israel every year since 2006 and became incredibly active; she interned with Hillel to organize Israel-related events to better connect them with Israeli culture; she joined the board of UCLA's pro-Israel group, Bruins for Israel as Community Relations Outreach Coordinator. Lian also interned at the Consulate General of Israel in Los Angeles and studied abroad at Tel Aviv University. Since graduating UCLA with a major in Political Science and minor in Jewish and Israel studies, Lian has worked as the program Manager for the Israeli Leadership Council (ILC), a non-profit organization with the mission to build active and giving Israeli and American communities in order to strengthen Israel, our next generation, and to provide a bridge to the Jewish-American community. Make an anniversary gift in honor of Lian. |
Jay FeldmanWith more than ten years experience in the Jewish communal and non-profit world, Jay S. Feldman is currently the Managing Director of the Alpha Epsilon Pi Foundation.
Previously, Jay was Director of Leadership Development at Jewish Federation & Family Services in Orange County, California, where he managed a community grant-making program for the leadership development, Israel education, and advocacy training of university students. Prior to that, Jay was Director of Development for Taglit-Birthright Israel in Orange County and is also a past Director of Jewish Student Life for the Hillel Foundation at UC Irvine. Jay participated in the Hasbara Fellowships program (Summer 2003) before graduating from the University of Central Florida with a degree in Advertising & Public Relations. He has remained an active supporter of Hasbara Felowships since his first trip with us and is one of our biggest cheerleaders today. Jay resides in southern California with his wife, Jennifer, a successful family law attorney. Make an anniversary gift in honor of Jay. Aliza Fishbein
Aliza grew up in Potomac, Maryland in a conservative home and attended the Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School for 13 years. In her last semester of high school she lived in Israel with her classmates. She recently graduated from the Johns Hopkins University with a B.A. in Public Health Studies and Political Science. While there, Aliza was active in the pro-Israel group on campus, the Coalition of Hopkins Activists for Israel (C.H.A.I.) and ultimately, became the group’s president. After her freshman year in college she lived in Jerusalem for the summer and worked for Israeli Member of Knesset, Binyamin Elon, as well as the Christian Allies Caucus, of which Elon was chairman. Aliza has also been involved in AIPAC throughout her life and was a CAMERA fellow in college. Aliza is currently a staffer in the United States Senate and resides in Washington, D.C.
Make an anniversary gift in honor of Aliza. Jonathan Mackenzie
Jonathan Mackenzie graduated from Osgoode Hall Law School in 2010. He currently practices civil litigation in Toronto, where he appears regularly on behalf of clients at the Ontario Superior Court of Justice. Jonathan was a member of the 2011 federal election campaign team for Toronto Conservative Member of Parliament John Carmichael. Jonathan was the Vice-President (Media & Publicity) of Hasbara at York from 2007 until 2009. He has been an active member of the Canadian Jewish Political Affairs Committee (CJPAC) since 2009. Jonathan loves travelling, having been to Europe, Israel, Australia, Costa Rica and Panama.
Make an anniversary gift in honor of Jonathan. Shanel Melamed
Shanel Melamed became a Hasbara Fellow in 2009, while President of SC Students for Israel at the University of Southern California. She graduated USC with a Bachelors of Arts in International Relations, and a Masters of Public Diplomacy in 2011. Shanel also spent a year studying Foreign Policy and International Law at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. Currently, she works for the Consulate General of Israel in Los Angeles.
Make an anniversary gift in honor of Shanel. Eric Schorr
Eric Schorr is the President of LionPAC, Columbia University's largest pro-Israel advocacy organization. He is a senior in the Joint Program between Columbia University & the Jewish Theological Seminary. He is majoring in Middle Eastern, South Asian & African Studies at Columbia, and Modern Jewish Studies with Honors in Hebrew at JTS. He attended Hasbara Fellowships in the winter of 2011. Eric was honored in 2011 in the Jewish Week's "36 Under 36" as a young Jewish innovator in the field of pro-Israel activism. Make an anniversary gift in honor of Eric. |