‘Girls for Peace in the Middle East’ Bat Mitzvah project raises $30K
NEW YORK | When Lili began planning her Bat Mitzvah, she knew she wanted Seeds of Peace to be a part of it.
“My whole life, I have been learning about Israel at my Hebrew school,” she said. “I first began to question the nature of the conflict between Israel and Palestine in 2014 during the summer of the Israel-Gaza war. I no longer wanted to see the conflict from only one side because if I did, I knew I could never be part of the solution.”
“I reached out to Seeds of Peace, and they encouraged me to do my first Bridges to Peace walk in New York City in October of 2014,” she said. “I had never seen young Jewish Israelis walking arm in arm with young Muslim Israelis and Palestinians.”
“I was so proud that I raised $300, but the best part was watching so many young people from all sides of the conflict who not only got along, but who really had developed deep bonds.”
When preparations started for her Bat Mitzvah is 2015, Lili knew she wanted to support Seeds of Peace in a much bigger way.
She had marched on International Women’s Day in March 2015 and saw the positive power of women leaders and wondered what if one of the best ways to achieve peace in the Middle East would be to increase the number of women leaders preventing conflict as well as resolving it.
“I decided to make Seeds of Peace my official Bat Mitzvah project and raise funds to support young Israeli and Palestinian girls my age from both sides of the conflict to attend the Summer Camp in Maine and build their political leadership skills and confidence as future leaders,” she said. “But I also wanted them to build relationships with each other, since it’s just harder to stereotype, or to go to war with, your friends.”
Lili held her Bat Mitzvah with 30 of her friends on February 20 at the Park Avenue Synagogue in New York, and spoke about the importance of providing girls from Israel and Palestine with the skills and the relationships to negotiate a lasting peace. Three Seeds—Siwar, Sarah, and Maya—joined her and spoke about their journeys.
In total, the evening raised $30,000 from Lili’s friends and family.
“I don’t for a minute think that my contribution will solve a problem that has been around for hundreds of years,” she said. “But if this project changes the futures of 6 girls, and they in return to their communities to impact hundreds of people positively, it’s possible the ripples will be felt in an entire region.”
That one so young can have such vision is to be applauded. Congratulations Lili on turning your vision into action and may the “seeds” you are encouraging, germinate and grow to help foster a more peaceful Middle East.