Personal Stories

We wrote about the Bissato family, Yehoshua, 45, Chana, 36, and their daughter Leah, 10, when they arrived in Israel from Caxias do Sul, Brazil. The former pastors' unusual path actually led them away from the teachings they grew up on and onto a path towards...

At the start of Chanukah, Shavei Israel had a guest of honor who gave us a wonderful talk about her personal life and her connection to Judaism. This unique and beautiful person is the famous Spanish-speaking actress Sara Mintz, former student of the Machon Miriam...

By Rav Reuven Tradburks Yaakov’s challenges never seem to end. He returns to the land of Israel. He is fearful of a confrontation with Esav. He prepares by dividing his entourage. A man fights him through the night, changing his name to Israel from Yaakov at...

Samuel Devasahayam was the founder of the Zion Torah Center in Erode, India. He was a courageous, G-d-fearing man, who left a huge hole in a community when he tragically passed away in 2018. His wife, Anne, has continued with the legacy he left, on...

Rachael Spero is originally from Cleveland, Ohio, and spent 15 years living in New York City. She went to Jewish day schools through high school and continued her Jewish education through college. She majored in studio arts and graphic design at Yeshiva University and continued...

Yonatan, 26, from Canada, has been a student of ours at Machon Milton, an English-language conversion institute, in partnership with the Rabbinical Council of America. He recently completed his conversion and was happy to write about his experience:  "I came in contact with Shavei Israel about...

Shavei Israel is proud and excited to have appointed a new director-general, Edith Blaustein! While she may be the new director, Edith is not new to Shavei at all. In fact, Edith has been working hard in many aspects of Shavei Israel over the last...

As part of our  Maani Center programming, with the help and advice of Shaar Binyamin and our dear friend Federico Pipman, representative of Mama Mía 360, this week there was a special personal stories panel called "Tales of Bnei Anousim." We had, as special guests,...

Yaakov, 45, immigrated to Israel about 3 years ago from Colombia because he decided he wanted to convert after attending Torah lessons and praying in the Magen Abraham Jewish community in Cali, Colombia. He contacted Shavei Israel, which, among other things, helps all those who...

Sometimes teachers really connect with a particular subject matter, or specific population. And sometimes a teacher connects with both, in a remarkable way, that makes all the difference for their students. Meet Dalia Netzer, a wonderful, dedicated - and beloved - Hebrew teacher, who has...