de Toledo High School’s Israel exchange programs (SIEP and EIEP) teach life skills and encourage self discovery, both things that are not taught in any school, but are as important as academics in becoming a well-rounded “A+ human being.”

dTHS has a multitude of engaging and connection-inspiring programs, the most prominent of which is the SIEP/EIEP exchange for sophomores. These programs are entirely unique in nature and the experience they provide for students. By allowing for students to house and care for their Israeli peers, the program goes beyond the academically educational. Even after the school day ends, students go home and live with their Israeli buddies, forcing them to get to know each other and learn about their individual cultures.

In addition to being educational with regards to life and social skills, the SIEP and EIEP programs spark a deep emotional connection between two people (or families) who may otherwise have never met. There is forever a special and unparalleled bond between two people who have participated in this exchange program together, visiting the other’s country and living with them in their house. In some cases, the bond forged can resemble that of a sibling connection: playful, loving, and unbreakable. Throughout life, these kinds of opportunities are rare at best, and even rarer in schools or school-provided programs. The fact that our school has a program that is able to repeatedly forge these kinds of bonds and provide these opportunities for every student is remarkable and wholly unique. It is important that we recognize and be gracious toward this special opportunity granted to us, value it, and make the most of it that we can.

I passionately support this program largely because I participated in it. Recently, I had the pleasure of hosting an Israeli girl in my home for ten days. During those ten days, I became closer with many people in my grade I had previously never associated myself with, made good friends with kids my age from the other side of the world, saw my country through fresh eyes, learned and grew as a person exponentially, and made a sisterly friendship entirely unique in circumstance and strength. Without SIEP, I never would have even been presented with the opportunity to experience any of those benefits, which I consider to have changed me rather significantly.

Preceding SIEP, I hadn’t had much of a connection point with some other students in my grade. However, being put in the same group together forced us to interact and discover things we had in common. Making these new bonds has expanded my friend group and created potential beginnings to lasting friendships. Not only did I grow closer with kids at my school, but I also met and became close with kids from Israel who had more in common with me than I’d allowed myself to hope. In fact, we became so close over their short stay that I was one of the many left visibly emotional over their departure at the end.

Another benefit that hadn’t occurred to me until it happened was getting to see my country, my whole way of life, through new and inexperienced eyes. My lovely Israeli buddy, Mika, had never had the chance to visit America before, but had always wanted to. This meant that everything about our country was foreign to her. We would drive down my street and she’d marvel at the houses and their mailboxes because they were “just like the ones in the movies.” She was so overwhelmed with excitement she even told me the colors seemed brighter here, and that pictures came out better. The stores were bigger, the rooms were fancier, the schools were nicer. Having never been to Israel myself, I couldn’t tell her if she was right or wrong, but I was fairly certain that at least a considerable amount of her raving over America stemmed simply from her excitement, and was not actually true. Regardless, having someone by my side who was awed over the simplest of things, the things I tend to take for granted every day, forced me to open my eyes and look again. I found myself taking time to appreciate all that I have, and to notice the things I considered mundane that comprised my daily life. It was odd at first, but it transformed the way in which I viewed my life and the people, places, and things in it. Eventually, I found that if I focused hard enough, I could be amazed by these things too; I could find that music was beautiful, and food was delicious. My eyes were opened to a whole new perspective on life, and I owed it all to Mika.

Without ever stepping foot in a classroom, the Israeli exchange students taught me a world of lessons. During their short stay, I learned what it means to welcome a stranger into my home and care for them as family. With the group, I learned how shockingly easy it is to love people you’ve only just met, and to notice quirks in your own culture that you’d never considered before, and try to imagine a place without them. As I pestered the Israelis with questions about their homeland and culture, they did their best to answer my inquiries. The most impressive element to me, however, was the ability of both sides to find common ground. Despite everything separating us, these strangers from the other side of the globe were able to relate to their American counterparts better than I’d ever imagined they could, and proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that no amount of differences can stand in the way of a friendship.

I gained, lastly, another intangible benefit from the exchange program. This benefit came in the form of a bond between me and my Israeli buddy, Mika. From the moment Mika first entered our house, she filled it with a glowing warmth that never subsided. She and I spent every waking moment outside of school together, and never was there so much as a slight argument. I loved learning about her life and her country, as I watched her learn about and live in mine. She and I now have a friendship distinct from all others in our lives, and an experience just as rare and memorable. In essence, this program is one of those few highly uncommon opportunities in life that is positive from every angle, and provides a breath of fresh air from the ordinary. Not only did it have an enormous impact on me in multiple ways, but it will also be a memory I fondly cherish for the rest of my life.