Since 1995, Partnership 2000 has sought to create a stronger connection between Jews in Israel and Jews outside of Israel. To accomplish this goal, the organization partners different cities in Israel with cities in the United States.

St. Louis and Atlanta are “sister cities” that partner with Yokneam and its surrounding region, Meggido, in Israel.

Local St. Louis teens, who choose to study in Israel for a year after high school, are hosted by families in the Yokneam-Meggido area so that they can attend a shabbaton. A shabbaton is a program that takes place over Shabbat, and usually consists of many structured activities.

This year, the program wanted to give back to Yokneam-Meggido for its hospitality by bringing 12 teens – nine boys and three girls – to St. Louis during Hanukkah. These teens had previously housed Americans for the annual shabbaton. They had the opportunity to celebrate Hanukkah with the Conservative, Reform, and Orthodox communities of St. Louis. They also visited a variety of local Jewish schools, acted as counselors for the Bnei Akiva youth group, and went to many St. Louis attractions, including the City Museum.

“We went to the Reform Jewish Academy and made Hanukkah cards with the kindergarten, which was a fun experience,” said Matan Abu, 16. This activity meant a lot to Matan because he felt it was a way for him to give back to St. Louis for its hospitality.

None of the students had been to America before, and did not know what to expect. They started learning English in the first grade, but this was the first time they had the opportunity to use their skills.

“I love America; the people here are very nice. The city of St. Louis is beautiful, but just a little cold,” Nitzan Mhuda, 16, said.

Matan also found America to be an exciting place. However, he felt that keeping kosher was more difficult in St. Louis than in Israel.

“I went to grab a bag of Cheetos off of the shelf. They are kosher in Israel, so I assumed they were also kosher here,” Matan said.

Matan said he preferred Israeli food to American food; however, he did find American food interesting.

“I had my first doughnut this week. They do not have doughnuts with a hole in the center in Israel,” he said.

Although they found the food to be different, the Israeli teens were more surprised to see the separation between the Conservative, Orthodox, and Reform sects of Judaism. They explained that in Israel, these groups exist but there is less division among them. In addition, not all Israelis belong to a specific group. There are the Chilonim – people who are Jewish but do not practice their religion, as well as religious Jews.

However, in Israel, being “religious” is different than in America. Not all religious Jews in Israel keep kosher or observe Shabbat. Aside from the Chilonim, Conservative, Reform, and Orthodox Jews, there are also the Charadim: the ultra-Orthodox group. According to Matan and Nitzan, the Charadim tend to separate themselves the most. However, the teens have friends in all of these groups.

Both Matan and Nitzan agree that Partnership 2000 does a great job uniting Jews from around the world. During their trip, they connected with St. Louis teens and built meaningful relationships. Through this experience, the Israeli teens learned more about their sister city, united with Jews outside of Israel, and had the opportunity to compare their home country to America.