By Sara Klein Wagner
It was a picture-perfect, undeniably once in-a-lifetime morning, the Sahara Desert sand was shimmering, we had just witnessed a magnificent sunrise over endless miles of dunes. It was so quiet we could hear the wind. We gathered, 30 in our group, with guides Muhammed from Morocco and Nir from Israel as Jeff Tuvlin – co-chair of our first-ever Federation leadership mission to Morocco – shared his reflection:
We all arrived here with full lives and with daily responsibilities, expectations, accomplishments, titles and names,” Jeff observed. “The desert doesn’t know who we are. We have never been here before, but the desert is not foreign to us. Maybe not this particular desert, but the desert ties us to our Jewish past. In our tradition, the desert is not a place where we had control, but where we formed who we were as a people.
There is a Moroccan-Jewish saying: darba b’shwaya katwassal –Little by little you arrive – the desert understands this. It’s been nearly two years since we decided to create a mission. From those modest initial steps – Jeff saying hineni, Here I am, ready to lead a new experience within our Jewish community – to Beth Salamon, then a vice chair of the JCL board stepping up as a co-chair. These two extraordinary leaders shared a vision to create a unique, immersive experience.
If you’ve been fortunate enough to have traveled to Israel or other Jewish destinations for an immersive group experience, or spent time at an overnight summer camp, you know what it means to turn everything else off and be in the moment. Data shows that Jewish youth/teens who attend overnight camp and/or go on Israel trips create formidable bonds with one another and with their broader Jewish community. I have observed a parallel trend carrying this over to our adults – specifically, our empty nesters. Like many Jewish Federations across the country that have begun creating new missions and immersive experiences, our 11-day Journey to Morocco mission demonstrated that there is serious interest in growing our own mission offerings.
Once home to more than 250,000 Jews, Morocco boasts a rich Jewish history, and a current desire from both the Jewish and Moroccan Muslim contingents to maintain the significant story of the Jewish community. The sites were inspiring, the medinas bustling, the food delicious (and way too much of it), and the people welcoming and warm. What was even more meaningful was that our 30-member group, which included many current and future leaders of our Louisville Jewish community, created memories and connections that will continue to blossom. When Jeff spoke in the desert reminding us that “we” had been in the desert before, there was implicit recognition that every step in Jewish history led us to where we are today. 
Our Jewish community is filled with opportunities and possibilities. As the iconic Jewish educator Avram Infeld often talks about building Jewish memories, that is what happened on this journey. In a short amount of time we learned, laughed and lifted up the work of volunteer leaders in our community. Our trip was bookended by the energy of two big cities, Casablanca and Marrakesh. In both we visited Jewish synagogues, a school, a Jewish museum and a community center. We could envision the vibrant communities that once filled these spaces. In Rabat we met with a representative of Association Mimouna, as young leaders work to preserve Jewish experiences and Jewish heritage sites in Morocco. However, it was in the desert, the vast open space, where I think we felt most connected to one another. And as Jeff pointed out, connected to our history and the Jewish memories that have been passed down to us.
As we sat together amid the vastness of the Sahara, it was easy to lose all sense of time and space. Even within the seemingly infinite desert, we are connected to a shared past and future.
Beth Salamon, a mission co-chair, summed things up, sharing: “I came into this trip hoping for a meaningful experience, but it far surpassed anything I imagined. I’m incredibly appreciative of the participants who placed their trust in us and said yes to this journey and embraced the experience with such openness. The bonds we formed feel lasting and real, and I know they will continue to grow once we’re back in Louisville. Hearing each person share what inspires their leadership, often during our long bus rides, was incredibly powerful. It not only deepened our connections but also broadened our understanding of the many ways we can engage and give back to our Louisville Jewish community. I am also truly grateful to the Louisville Federation for supporting this endeavor. It really was the trip of a lifetime.”
On our final evening Jeff Tuvlin shared the following:
“As I look around this room on our final evening in Morocco, the question I ask myself is: Was this trip a success?”
To answer that, we have to look at where we’ve been. We came here to experience something unique, and we found it in the mosque in Casablanca – we found it in the narrow alleys of Rabat and Fez and in the survival and members of the synagogues preserved there. We found it in the desert and in this beautiful hotel and in the wisdom of our guides Nir and Mohammad the 600 millionth.
We found more: As Jews traveling in a Muslim country, we were not just tolerated; we felt safe and welcomed -we would not have predicted before this trip that we would feel comfortable enough to do Kabbalat Shabbat and Havdalah OUT IN PUBLIC – how far we’ve come in a week
But the true measure of success isn’t found in the pictures we took or the souvenirs we bought (although the merchants might disagree with that).
Success for this trip looks like CONTINUITY when we get home.
It looks like the CONVERSATIONS we had on the bus about understanding our own community’s diverse range of ways to lead. It looks like the PASSION of those of you, who, over the last few days, have pulled me aside to say, “I have an idea —or —I want to do more.”
If you leave this trip feeling more connected to ANYONE sitting in this room or feel ANY measure of responsibility no matter how big or small for our community waiting for us at home, then we have achieved exactly what we set out to do.
Thank you for your COURAGE to explore, your WILLINGNESS to lead, and for making this journey more than just a trip, but a MOMENT in Louisville’s Jewish leadership. THANK YOU!
Sara Klein Wagner is President and CEO of the Jewish Federation of Louisville and the Trager Family JCC.