Date: 01.24.10

A group of 31 Bat Mitzvah girls from Sderot will visit the Bible Lands Museum as part of a special "Bat Mitzvah Experience" project organized by Connections Israel. These girls have been hand-picked by the Sderot Dept. of Social Services to participate in this special trip to Jerusalem based on their extreme financial, psychological and familial needs. Many of the girls come from single parent families and all have suffered in some way from the ongoing kassam rocket attacks. The Bat Mitzvah Experience offers a rare opportunity to break the crippling cycle of violence, poverty and fear and offer a ray of hope and a glimpse at the world outside of the traumatic reality of their community.

The Bible Lands Museum Jerusalem is proud to offer a specially designed program for these young girls that will provide them with a memorable and enjoyable educational experience. Museum guides will guide the girls through the galleries on a tour focusing on Heroines of the Bible. The tour will explore characteristics such as courage, kindness, and leadership, through the stories of some of the great women of our history such as Esther, Sarah, Rachel, and Miriam. The tour will offer an opportunity to draw parallels and discuss the relevance to their own lives. Following the tour the girls will participate in a jewelry making workshop inspired by the artifacts on display.

While the young women will be touring the Museum and discovering the Heroines of the Bible, a smaller group of approximately 12 teenagers will receive their own special tour: members of the Sderot Young Leadership project, these teens have committed to excel in school, learn English and attend various leadership training programs in order to give back to their community. The Young Leaders will participate in a guided tour on Royalty and Leadership in the Ancient Near East. They will learn about the duties and roles of kings in different cultures and the way they represented themselves, and they will compare the kings of ancient times to Jewish leaders such as Moses, Joshua and the King David and King Solomon.

Made possible by the American Friends of the Bible Lands Museum Jerusalem.