When Sarah Kitchner first traveled to Israel, she knew it wouldn’t be her last visit. Now, as a Birthright Israel Fellow, the Mizzou Hillel educator is preparing to guide Jewish students through the experience. Earlier this month, she joined 81 other educators in Chicago for an intensive training designed to equip trip leaders with the skills to foster meaningful connections to Jewish identity and Israel.
With Birthright trips resuming in a post-Oct. 7 world, conversations about Israel are more complex than ever. Kitchner and her fellow educators are being prepared to help young Jewish adults navigate these discussions, explore their identities and form authentic connections to Israel.
From New Jersey to Missouri: A lifelong connection to Israel
For Kitchner this journey started long before she stepped into a leadership role. A New Jersey native, she grew up deeply connected to Jewish life, from BBYO and USY to singing with the international Jewish teen choir, HaZamir.
Her first visit to Israel was for her brother’s bar mitzvah at Robinson’s Arch in Jerusalem, and she returned several times, even performing in amphitheaters through HaZamir’s sister chapter in Israel.
By the time she was a senior at Suffolk University, she had already signed up for a Birthright trip, but the events of Oct. 7 changed everything.
“My trip was supposed to be canceled. Advisors kept saying it wasn’t going to happen, but I told myself I was going on the next trip, no matter what,” she said.
Kitchner ultimately traveled to Israel on Jan. 1, 2024, as part of the first Birthright trip back after the war began. The experience was unlike any she had before.
“It was a completely different trip. There were security measures in place, places we weren’t allowed to go. In the past the focus was always, ‘Israel is amazing, this is why we’re here.’ But this time we talked about Israel as a real place with real challenges, just like in the U.S. That changed a lot for me.”
Birthright Israel Fellows: Preparing trip leaders for a new era
That experience combined with her work at Mizzou Hillel inspired her to apply for the Birthright Israel Fellows program. The initiative, run in partnership with the iCenter, trains trip leaders to guide students through the nuances of Israel education, fostering deep conversations and lasting connections.
“Birthright is such a powerful experience, and I wanted to be the best guide I could be for students going through it,” she said. “This fellowship gave me a way to make sure participants feel seen and heard and to prepare for all the things I might not have known as a first-time staffer.”
While the Chicago training covered logistics like planning itineraries and working with Israeli tour guides, Kitchner said the biggest takeaway was learning how to lead difficult conversations.
“Especially now, we have to help students process their emotions, their questions and even their fears,” she said. “They’re going to arrive in Israel with a lot of concerns about security and what’s happening politically. My role is to make them feel like they belong, not just throw information at them.”
Looking ahead: Leading the next generation of Jewish travelers
Kitchner is currently in discussions about staffing a trip this summer while Mizzou Hillel is set to lead a Birthright trip in winter 2025. Although the trip is coordinated through Mizzou Hillel and prioritizes University of Missouri students, it often includes friends and peers from outside the campus community.
But with the unpredictability of the region, she acknowledges that plans could change at any moment.
“I can’t say what’s going to happen tomorrow, just like we haven’t been able to predict the past 16 months,” she said. “But I choose to stay positive. I know Israel will do everything to keep us safe and I believe in the importance of students seeing it firsthand.”
| RELATED: Inside the Jewish Greek resistance: Area fraternities and sororities battle campus hate
