Building Our Jewish Future

When Eli Friedman graduated from Krieger Schechter Day School and entered public high school, he knew one thing for certain: he wanted to stay connected Jewishly. That was when he discovered 4Front, The Associated’s teen programming initiative managed by the JCC.

His first program was the Social Innovation Fellowship, a chance to explore entrepreneurship, Jewish values and social change. Inspired by this experience, Eli became a Diller Teen Fellow, meeting Jewish teens from around the world; developing a friendship with Ido, his counterpart in Ashkelon; and spending three weeks in Israel. In his senior year, he sat on the JCC board as part of the Gesher program.

“4Front provides so many different ways for students to really stay connected to Judaism while exploring what they enjoy,” he says.

4Front, he adds, made him realize that he wanted to continue his Jewish journey in college and beyond.

At the University of Maryland, College Park, he joined a Jewish fraternity and became involved with Hillel and Chabad. He traveled to Israel on Birthright and the Birthright Onward Israel program.

And the lessons he learned through 4Front, along with his relationship with Ido, made him more equipped to respond to antisemitism and anti-Israel rhetoric when he encountered it on campus.

Most importantly, Eli does not see his journey ending here. When asked about the future, he says, “I definitely want to take on a leadership role and have an impact on my community.”

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Building Our Jewish Future

Building Our Jewish Future

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