Israeli Emissaries
Mayan Sulami and Hodaya Kruvi
In Israel, joining the army is mandatory. However, if a religious girl prefers not to join, they have the option of national service both in Israel and overseas. Mayan Sulami and Hodaya Kruvi are two of these girls. They will be in Pittsburgh for the next year teaching Jewish children and teens Hebrew and about the state of Israel.
Mayan grew up in a small village near Tel Aviv called Gani-Tikva (which means “hope”). She is one of four children, two girls and two boys. Her first brother is her twin and he will be in the army this year. Her second brother is a senior in high school and her youngest sibling, her sister, is in fifth grade this year. In high school, Mayan majored in music and has been playing the piano for 12 years. Like Mayan, Hodaya grew up in Israel. She has five brothers and one sister. When she was in fourth grade, she learned English. She also loves art and aspires to enter the field of art therapy.
Both Mayan and Hodaya’s first year of service had to be done in Israel. For this year, Mayan gave tours in Svat and its neighboring areas. Originally, she was going to spend her second year in Svat too, but changed her mind. Most religious girls who enter the overseas service program have the option of going and teaching in Jewish communities from Canada to Russia and Australia to Uruguay their second year. However, because she joined the program so late, one of her only options was to come and teach in the Pittsburgh. It is the first time in the U.S. for both Mayan and Hodaya. However, Hodaya has cousins in Long Island, New York.
While Mayan and Hodaya are here, they will be teaching at 4 different schools. They’ll teach at Yeshiva, Hillel, Community Day and J-Site. Mayan will be teaching Jewish students Hebrew and about Israel first-hand. In addition to these courses, Hodaya will be teaching art also. This summer they will teach at a Jewish summer camp. Mayan describes the United States as being very different from Israel. Although she misses her family tremendously, she likes Pittsburgh overall. She says that people here are more polite and more patient and that Pittsburgh is very beautiful.
