By Donald H. Harrison
AGOURA HILLS, California — For many years, Shlomo “Momo” Lifshitz was the travel entrepreneur who tried to greet each one of the 55,000 “Operation Birthright” participants that his company, Oranim, took responsibility for showing around during their 10-day visits to Israel. “Welcome home!” he would enthusiastically say in greeting to each young Jewish traveler as he or she arrived in Israel. Lifshitz also would urge the visitors to find themselves Jewish spouses, and even offered to host their honeymoons in Israel if they did so. In addition, he urged them to make “aliyah” to Israel.
Not everybody loved his proselytizing for Jewish marriages nor for immigration to Israel. Some youngsters taking the free trip to Israel–in particular those whose own parents were intermarried–complained to Taglit officials, who in turn told Lifshitz to stick to the tours and to keep his opinions to himself. A proud and passionate man, Lifshitz was not about to be stifled. In 2009, he announced that he was severing his ties with Operation Birthright.
For a while Lifshitz retired from the Israel travel business, but, in an interview here, he said he found himself both restless and quite concerned that Birthright trips, alone, were insufficient to forge durable ties between Jews of Israel and those of the Diaspora. Over a Sunday, Jan. 19, breakfast of scrambled eggs and a bagel at Jinky’s Cafe here, he said he has been working with various educational institutions, particularly with the Technion, to create “meaningful” Israel travel-and-learning experiences that expose visitors to Israel in far greater depth than the introductory 10-day Birthright tours.
For example, he said, Technion has a one-year, English-language, “start-up MBA program” that it is offering at its new Tel Aviv campus. According to a brochure, “the unique model of Start-up MBA provides essential training in management functions, underscoring the skills needed for entrepreneurs who are interested in launching their start-up company or promoting entrepreneurship and innovation in their organizations.” In addition to taking classes at a prestigious university in the “start-up” nation, the program provides living arrangements “by the beach in Tel Aviv.”
Lifshitz said the year-long MBA program is priced at $35,000, which “is a lot of money in Israel, but if you compare it to the prestigious MBA’s in America, it is extremely cheap.”
Another activity-based program with the Technion is designed for teachers who want to improve their knowledge and techniques for teaching computer science, said Lifshitz. To be offered in July at Technion’s main campus in Haifa, the course will include 70 hours of lectures, practical assignment, and day trips to various high-tech companies and schools in Haifa. Fridays and Saturdays will be free for students to experience Israel.
Another educational offering that Lifshitz’s new company — Lirom– has arranged is one in which students may learn Hebrew, Arabic or Farsi in the morning, and then have afternoons and weekends free to explore Israel. There are separate programs for high school students and college students.
The name “Lirom” doesn’t come from any of those languages; it is a made-up name combining initials of his family name with that of his wife, Lilfschitz said.
In addition to language study, Lirom is now providing visitors to Israel with programs in fashion and styling in conjunction with the Shenkar College of Design. At another venue, Lirom is offering self-defense training, in which students learn the Israeli martial art of krav maga as well as combat driving, weapons training, and survival skills, while receiving a civilian’s introduction and overview of the Israel’s Defense Forces. Lifshitz, 57, is a retired lieutenant colonel in the IDF.
Not yet on the books, but coming along well enough that Lifshitz feels comfortable talking about it, is a four-year program in which visitors to Israel can earn a bachelor’s degree, two master’s degree, and have the experience of a six-month internship, all for a total price of $65,000. Lifshitz said arrangements are still pending but when everything is in place, the program will be a cooperative one between higher-education institutions in Israel and the United States, with the academic degrees stemming from the program being issued jointly by both the American and Israeli institution. “I can tell you about the concept, but I can’t tell you yet the name of the colleges,” he said.
Further into the future, he said,may be a program that will emphasize the use and conservation of water in the desert.
The governing idea is to combine travel with learning, especially in those areas in which Israel occupies a leadership position.
Information about all the programs is on the Lirom website but as a guideline, Lifshitz said, most programs for teens, excluding the price of the flights, “are comparable to American summer camp, something like $1,200 to $1,300 per week.”
While these Israel experiences are far from free, he said, in some cases Jewish Federations are willing to provide scholarships to help defray costs. MBA programs, he said, can qualify for various U.S. government assistance programs including the GI Bill and Federal Student Aid.
Lifshitz was in the Los Angeles area to attend a convention of community Jewish day schools. The Lirom Global Education offices are in Kfar Saba, Israel.
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Harrison is editor of San Diego Jewish World. He may be contacted via donald.harrison@sdjewishworld.com