The Charlotte Jewish News- Janurary 2026- Page 10
Notes From Israel: A Shaliach’ s Diary Reflecting on Two Weeks in Charlotte.
By Tobias Siegel
Two jam-packed weeks in Charlotte- made possible by Jewish Federation of Greater Charlotte- taught me a lot about the diversity of the Jewish Diaspora and introduced me to a growing, vibrant community. The experience also reinforced in me something I’ ve long believed: today more than ever, the most meaningful way to connect to Israel isn’ t through diplomacy, policy, or governments, but through human connections, personal stories, and the faces behind them.
Mika, my co-emissary, and I arrived in mid-October for what we were told would be a pilot program designed to reintroduce the Jewish Agency’ s( JAFI) shlichut initiative in smaller Jewish communities considering bringing it back. In short, JAFI’ s shlichut program sends Israeli emissaries to work with different age groups and environments within the communities that host them. From classrooms and university campuses to synagogues and kindergartens, shlichim adapt to the needs and wants of the community that hosts them.
Before coming to Charlotte, I had worked with the Jewish communities of Australia and New Zealand for two years. Getting oriented and understanding the specific“ how things work” of each community takes time, so I didn’ t initially expect much from this brief experience. But JAFI described the initiative as a“ shlichut on steroids,” and it certainly lived up to the name.
In the span of two weeks, we sang Hebrew tunes with toddlers at the Charlotte Jewish Preschool, joined services in several synagogues and even a church, attended the community’ s Oct. 7 memorial event and ran a Nova-inspired dance workshop. We facilitated sessions with teenagers and seniors about media bias and Israeli culture, debated and shmoozed with young adults, and met donors over fancy Shabbat dinners. The whirlwind schedule reflected the multi-layered nature of Charlotte’ s growing Jewish community. Each encounter revealed another facet of its rich mosaic of identities.
From celebrating Simchat Torah with Chabad to touring Charlotte’ s Jewish cemetery with young professionals, we saw uniquely different approaches to expressing Jewish life. Yet the common thread running through all of them was a genuine desire for connection, both within the community and, more broadly, with Israel.
In an era so heavily shaped by headlines and screens, the importance of physical presence and genuine engagement cannot be overstated. The past couple of years have pushed many to oversimplify an increasingly complex reality and, in the process, to dehumanize entire populations. Sometimes this is done intentionally and maliciously, as we’ ve seen from anti-Israel groups. But it can also happen unintentionally, by friends, not foes, who struggle to rationalize decisions made in a world very different from their own.
Understanding and empathizing with one another is always easier in person than online. And I can confidently say during our time in Charlotte, Mika and I were able to hold honest, often difficult conversations with young Jews grappling with the dire situation in Gaza. Putting a face and a life story to an issue opens space for nuance and mutual understanding.
More than once, it felt like I was expected to represent“ the Israeli narrative” and arrive armed with talking points defending the government or the IDF. But when my responses weren’ t black-and-white, when I was openly critical of certain policies and deeply sympathetic to Palestinian suffering, the tone shifted. The room softened. We could suddenly have a real conversation that acknowledged complexity, disagreement, and the richness of multiple perspectives as well as truths.
And that, to me, is one of the core reasons shlichut works. Diaspora Jews and Israelis desperately need these encounters and conversations, especially now. They remind us we’ re not alone, and they highlight how dangerous it can be when we begin to dehumanize others.
On a personal level, I’ ve never felt more isolated or routinely threatened because of my nationality and identity than I have since Oct. 7. Finding a community in Charlotte that was not
only welcoming but genuinely interested in hearing my story and my Israeli perspective was more than refreshing, it was healing. It rebuilt some long-lost confidence and trust that we will eventually be okay. Yihye beseder.
Before going on shlichut, you’ re told your main purpose is to bring Israel to the community you’ re sent to. But Israel today is a mixture of post-trauma, joy, fear, hope, grief and resilience. There is no single cohesive image that represents Israel or Israelis. The best we can do is offer our authentic selves and remember we only reflect a small piece of the whole. Only through telling our own stories can we articulate the complexity of our collective reality.
One of my personal highlights was the opportunity to share the story of my late uncle, Haim Ben Aryeh. Speaking at the community’ s Oct. 7 commemoration, I shared details of Haim’ s bravery and ultimate sacrifice. His story sheds light on the unseen heroes of that dreadful day and teaches us about the importance of reaching out and supporting our communities, even when it doesn’ t feel urgent. Support is often most powerful when we don’ t even realize we need it.
A few days after sharing Haim’ s story, I was running a session with 5th graders at the Charlotte Jewish Day School when a teacher approached me with an illustrated book. She said
Tobias Siegel, Noah Goldman, and Mika Mizrahi
it included Haim’ s story. Half shocked and half assuming she was confusing him with someone else, I skimmed through it. And there it was: a caption that read,“ In memory of Haim Ben- Aryeh, who knew more than anyone else on the road how to make bridges between people.”
I still don’ t know how that book found its way into the school’ s library. But, ironically,
Connecting the passions of our clients with the current and future needs of our Jewish community
We’ re here to guide you and develop a plan for your charitable giving.
To learn more, contact 704.973.4544 the fact that it did perfectly reflects the value and importance of building bridges by connecting people, stories and values across continents to foster a supportive, resilient community. A mishpucha. And that, in a nutshell, is what shlichut is all about.