Meet Your Staff: Pam, David, and Neta
Pam Slifer
Where are you from originally and where do you live now? New Jersey and now live in New York
When did you go to Israel for the first time? When I was a senior in high school, I went with my class!
What's a fun fact about you? I love karaoke!
What's your favorite Israeli food/favorite place in Israel to eat it? Five shekel falafel from a food truck in Holon!
What's your favorite place to visit in Israel? I love visiting the Palmach Museum in Ramat Aviv, Israel
What's the #1 reason that you recommend that your friends and family should go on Taglit-Birthright Israel with Shorashim? A Shorashim Birthright Israel trip will leave you feeling deeply connected to Israel and you will gain historical knowledge about the state while having the time of your life!
What's your spirit animal and why? My dog. We were raised/trained by the same peeps, so we likely have the same skills.
David Korenthal
Where are you from originally and where do you live now? Originally from Glenview, IL, and I now live in Somerville, MA
What do you for a living? I'm a grad student in the Hornstein Program at Brandeis University, pursuing an MBA and an MA in Jewish Professional Leadership.
When did you go to Israel for the first time? When I was 16, as a participant on my summer camp's teen trip.
What's your favorite Israeli food/favorite place to eat it? Sabich from Sabich Frishman in Tel Aviv.
What's a fun fact about you? I have two different colored eyes.
If there was one aspect of Israel that you could bring back to America with you, what would it be? The no-nonsense attitude and the brutal honesty.
What's the #1 reason that you recommend that your friends and family should go on Taglit-Birthright Israel with Shorashim? 10 days with Israelis!
What's your favorite place to visit in Israel? My favorite place to visit in Israel is the North for all of the great hikes!
Neta Friedman
What's your favorite Shorashim memory? Star gazing in the desert with a great group of people. Staying perfectly quiet together.
What's a fun fact about yourself? When I was about ten years old, I broke my my pinky finger and the doctor did a bad job fixing it. It's still a little harder to bend and a little shorter than the right little finger by about one cm.
What's your favorite Israeli food? Where's your favorite place in Israel to eat it? It's called a Smbusak and there's only one place to get the really good ones. A little Druz village in the north of Israel called Horfeish. Basically, it's a little like a pizza that was folded in half so that it looks like half a circle. The toppings are different of course. I can eat them all day every day!
What do you love most about Shorashim? Shorashim has such an amazing vibe! Everyone is like a family here. There's always someone to laugh with, talk with ,or anything else you could possibly want.
What's your favorite site to go to take participants to on Taglit? Perhaps Ein Ovdat National Park. For many of the participants, it's their first time in the desert and their experience there can be very good. It's a truly remarkable place.
What's your favorite city in Israel and why? I think I'm more of a country kind of guy, but there is no doubt that Tel Aviv is one of the most awesome cities anywhere in the world. There's always something going on, concerts, restaurants, clubs and of course - the beach. There's nothing like going into the water in the summer, especially at nights.
If you could say one thing to future participants, what would it be? The most important thing you need to do, is to have FUN!
Why is it important to you to have Israelis on the trip for all 10 days? I think that the best way to experience what Israel really is, is by letting the locals show you what they do, who they are. It's also just as important for the Israelis because they rediscover Israel through their American friend's eyes, and it can be a very beautiful picture. The best part about it has to be the amazing bond everyone feels to each other at the end of the trip. Lifelong friendships are made.
