The Sapir Center joined forces with the Srigim program created by the Moshavim Movement, to build community mentoring for the participating moshavim.
The mentoring program is aimed at reinforcing community resilience via Jewish-Israeli culture. The Srigim program was established by the Moshavim Movement to strengthen the moshavim communities through a connection to Jewish-Israeli-Moshavim culture. Srigim’s leading program was ‘The Incubator’ in which community activists acquired in-depth familiarity with Jewish-Israeli culture, acquired tools for community building, and learned how to connect the two.
With an understanding that while the Incubator’s training is necessary, it is insufficient. In order to generate a real change, the Sapir Center joined the program with the aim of assisting the activists implement their knowledge in the unique reality of each moshav via professional mentoring. In order to enable them fulfill their role in the most effective manner, the moshavim mentors received professional training for each stage of the community process they built which also helped them contend with its complex challenges.
Furthermore, the entire process was documented and a model was written for community mentoring of this type that sought to highlight the different stages of the mentors’ training and of the mentoring itself, as well as the complex relation between theory and practice.
Target Audience
Moshavim throughout Israel, their community activists, and community mentors.
Goals
- To provide mentoring and facilitation that assist moshav communities in building community programs connected to the Jewish-Israeli calendar and which bolster community resilience.
- To build a professional training program for the community mentors.
- To create a work model of mentoring for moshavim and other communities aimed at strengthening the community via Jewish-Israeli culture.
Results
A work process was held with the activists on each of the moshavim that led to the creation of various events which emphasized the community members’ own endeavor, a connection between people in the community, and the strengthening of local traditions.
The Srigim program was closed for various reasons and the activity and mentoring process was therefore suspended at some of the moshavim.
Some of the processes created in the moshavim:
Nir Hen
during the mentoring process, the moshav initiated meetings aimed at strengthening the connections between the members (women's evenings, shabbat celebration) and created meaningful communal activities (a community Hannukah evening, Purim gifts with added value, and others). As a result, internal community relations were strengthened and based on a meaningful connection to the Jewish calendar.
Kfar Ahim
the community activists sought to bolster the moshav identity by creating a local archive that highlights the moshav's fundamental elements (a mixed religious-secular community). This led to the creation of 'Shvil Rishonim' ('Path of the Founding Settlers') and a community Sukkot celebration linking the holiday to the moshav and its heritage.
Be'er Milka
the goal of the moshav activity was to create robust traditions of the moshav members' involvement in communal events, as a means to guaranteeing long-term community resilience. A significant team of activists was formed that created an operational plan.
Sde David
the community process aimed towards creating personal bonds between veteran and new members via a series of meetings centered around the Jewish calendar calendar e.g. a joint olive harvest on Sukkot.