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Dinner on the first evening - group photo.

Morning of our second day at the Diplomat Hotel (a SRO residence for Russian and other immigrants who have not managed to fully integrate into communities in Israel).

Dancing at the Diplomat Hotel.

More dancing.

Day 2 - on the move.

Day 2.

Tues: Israel Guide Dog Center for the Blind - Arrival

Tues: Guide Dog Center - Noach Braun, Director of the Center and mitzvah hero speaks to our group about the history and work of the center.

Tues: Guide Dog Center - Danny Siegel and two friends get some refreshments.

Tues: Guide Dog Center - Rabbi Debra Robbins from Dallas, Texas presents a check on behalf of a Bar Mitzvah from her congregation who raised funds for the center as a mitzvah project.

Tues: Lunch Break in Netanya

Tues: Netanya - the Park Hotel, site of recent terrorist bombing.

Tues: The Israel Theraputic Riding Association - Mitzvah Horses - a conversation with children victimized by terror bombing.

Tues: Theraputic Riding - the CBI/Ziv group prepares to participate in planting and dedication of a tree to honor Ilan Ramon. Here Rabbi Bayar speaks with the wife of Israel's former President Weizmann who joined us for the ceremony.

Tues: Theraputic Riding - Plaque honoring Ilan Ramon

Tues: Theraputic Riding - Mrs. Weizmann addresses our group at the tree planting dedication ceremony.

Tues: Theraputic Riding - Rabbi Bayar speaks at the dedication ceremony, joined by mitzvah hero Anita Shkedi (in red).

Tues: Theraputic Riding - Manny Magid places a stone at the base of the tree at the conclusion of the ceremony.

Tues: Theraputic Riding - Children work with instructors to ride horses as therapy to overcome the loss of their mother in a terrorist bombing.

Wed: A visit to Tova's kitchen. Tova Cohen feeds hungry neighborhood people each Wednesday. She cooks in a tiny kitchen just off the street in the Bukharan neighborhood in Jerusalem.

Wed: Tova's Kitchen - Tovah is a real mitzvah hero. Both she and her kitchen may be "diminutive", but they make a huge impact on hunger in the neighborhood.

Wed: Tova's Kitchen - this IS Tova's kitchen.

Wed: Tova's Kitchen - the small synagogue adjoining Tova's kitchen where the hungry in the neighborhood gather to take their meal.

Wed: Tova's Kitchen - off to the butcher with Tova to buy a big supply of chicken.

Wed: Tova's Kitchen - a view up the street to the entrance to the synagogue and Tova's kitchen.

Wed: Tova's Kitchen - everyone joins in a group picture with Tova.

Wed: The "Chicken Lady" - we visit the apartment of Clara Hammer, a mitzvah hero who provides Shabbat food for the hungry of Jerusalem. She provides Shabbat food (chicken and other meat) to more than 150 families and also includes "Rosh Chodesh" checks to others in need outside her immediate neighborhood. She's also full of energy and incredibly entertaining!

Thurs: Shaare Zedek Hospital - breakfast talk with Amalia Oren, Head Social Worker, on challenges of war.

Thurs: Shaare Zedek Hospital - CBI's own Rosebud prepares for hosptital visit by making up a clown assistant.

Thurs: Shaare Zedek Hospital - Rosbud visits with a patient and delivers a gift.

Thurs: Shaare Zedek Hospital - making "rounds" with gifts for young patients.

Thurs: Western Wall Tunnel - the good weather had to change sometime; today it's been raining, making the tour of the Western Wall Tunnel a welcome escape from the rain at the Kotel. Here we receive an overview of the tunnel from our guide.

Thurs: Western Wall Tunnel - we receive a detailed history of the temple mount using a sophisticated model (foreground), with the wall itself pictured in the background.

Thurs: Western Wall Tunnel - The tunnels can be quite high and narrow!

Thurs: Jewish Quarter - our group assembles under cover to escape the rain as we begin a visit to the Jewish Quarter of the Old City.

Thurs: Shalva: Meeting the Challenge of Caring for Special Needs Children - Kalman and Malky Samuels' son Yossi lost his sight and hearing in the 1970's. Yossi subsequently was taught to comminicate in hebrew through physical signing (in a manner similar to that used by Helen Keller). In gratitude, the Samuels created Shalva to offer respite care to families with seriously disabled children. Here, our group visits a treatment area.

Thurs: Shalva - several members of our group visit and experience the sights and sounds of a special sensory stimulation room.

Thurs: Shalva - children experience different visual and audible experiences in a special room. Here, tubes create colored light and bubbles.

Thurs: Shalva - we have the honor of meeting Yossi during his swimming period in the Shalva pool. Here, he speaks with his brother, who acted as our guide throughout the facility.

Thurs: A Milestone Birthday - our group dined together this evening and celebrated Ethel Rosenfeld's milestone birthday. If only we all had Ethel's energy and enthusiasm!

Thurs: Happy Birthday Ethel - here comes her birthday cake!

Thurs: Happy Birthday Ethel - was the cake really a surprise?

Thurs: Happy Birthday Ethel - making a wish...

Fri: Impact of Terrorism - breakfast speaker Laurie Goldberg speaks to us about the personal impact of the loss of classmates in the Hebrew University bombing.

Fri: Impact of Terrorism - Danny Tourjeman, a survivor of the Moment Cafe bombing, speaks about his injuries, his ongoing recovery, and his reactions to subsequent acts of terror (including counseling of other victims).

Fri: Rabbanit Bracha Kapach - Arriving at the Rabbanit's home to learn about her feeding 4500 families at Pesach and the hungry throughout the year.

Fri: Rabbanit - A mitzvah hero known throughout Jerusalem, the Rabbanit and Naomi talk about her good works.

Fri: Rabbanit - We see an fine example of Yemmeni needlework done by the Rabbanit before she began her fulltime mitzvah work.

Fri: Rabbanit - Danny Siegel explains how the Rabbanit provides food on a weekly basis for the needy. The loaves of bread in front of him are provided weekly by a store that encourages customers to buy one loaf for themselves and a second to be delivered to the poor through the Rabbanit.

Saturday Evening: After a wonderful Shabbat, there is time to reflect on the events of the last week, and recap with some additional photos. For those who might have been wondering, I'm really here - just usually behind the camera.

Sat Eve - we were joined for dinner at the Village Green restaurant by mitzvah hero Yoel Dorkam. Yoel took over the organization of volunteers originally organized by Ya'akov Maimon to work with and teach newly arrived citizens. Currently much work is focused on new arrivals from Ethiopia. We visited some of these immigrants and their tutors on Monday.

Sat Eve - after our vegetarian dinner at The Village Green Restaurant last Sunday, several among us could not resist some Shawarma for dessert.

Sat Eve - The former Diplomat Hotel has been turned from a five star hotel into "single room occupancy" home for hundreds of Russian emigres, most of them elderly. We visited mitzvah hero Alice Jonah, who provides essential support for these residents, last Sunday. Pictured here is the Diplomat Hotel (with our almost ever present tour bus also in view).

Sat Eve - There is a wonderful choir at the Diplomat, with an amazing leader who has written several pieces of music in both Russian and Hebrew. We were entertained by the choir, hearing some of this original music, and also enjoying a dance performance. Pictured here is the choir performing for us on Monday.

Sat Eve - the performance at the Diplomat also included several solo performances; here we hear a performance in English of several songs selected specially for our visit.

Sat Eve - we enjoyed not only a demonstration of several ethnic dances, but were later invited to participate. Here, one member of the choir dances while other sing.

Sat Eve - three key members of the Diplomat choir specifically asked that we take their picture. The director of the choir is pictured in the center of this group.

Sat Eve - Alice Jonah's focus is improving the lives of residents at the Diplomat. During our Monday visit we were invited by several residents to see their small apartments. Pictured here on the left is one resident who opened her home, together with the person who guided a small group of us through several different apartments.

Sat Eve - our visit to Tovah Cohen's neighborhood on Wednesday underscored the fact that there is a tremendous amount of underreported poverty in Israel. Photographed here is a small shop in the same neighborhood as Tova's kitchen, which perhaps provides some additional indication of the overall economic status of the area.

Sat Eve - several of us visited Yad Vashem on Wednesday. Lori and our guide are pictured here standing on cobble stones from the Warsaw Ghetto.

Sat Eve - our guide at Yad Vashem was a survivor from Switzerland. She was able to provide many personal insights from her own personal history.

Sat Eve - Our visit to the Gilo neighborhood on Monday gave us a first hand look at the problems faced by border communities. Gilo was subject to sniper fire from nearby Arab neighborhoods for several months. To protect residents, many apartments in the line of fire were refitted with bullet proof windows, and the neighborhood streets were lined with high concrete barriers to reduce the possibility that residents and their apartments would remain in the line of fire. Local artists quickly decorated these concrete barriers; an example of the work is pictured here.

Sat Eve - looking out from the Gilo neighborhood we saw a new limited access highway that bypasses several Arab communities. However, the proximity of the road to these communities has resulted in several sniper incidents since the road opened.

Sat Eve - it is sometimes difficult to measure just how close some of the militant Arab communities are to Jewish residents of Jerusalem and its environs. Here looking out from Gilo is the neighboring Arab community from which sniper fire was being directed.

Sat Eve - A second example of the use of a concrete barrier in Gilo, and the art work that attempts to offset the harsh reality of the barrier.

Sat Eve - Rabbi Debra Robbins picks up loose rusting nails from a spot on the street in Gilo in which a terrorist bomb (laced with nails and bolts) exploded.

Sat Eve - our visit to Shaare Zedek Hospital on Thursday also reminded us that despite the infitada the hospital (and others - most notably Hadassah hospital) treats both Arab and Jewish patients, and have Jewish and Arab doctors on staff that treat patients without regard to religion or ethnicity.

Sat Eve - Some additional toy deliveries at Shaare Zedek Hospital's pediatric ward.

Sat Eve - the smiling face of Rosebud's junior assistant Orlie Kodish - the four year-old daughter of our tour director Ken Kodish

Sat Eve - The visit to the Western Wall Tunnel on Thursday was one highlight of the trip. Heavy rain made it difficult to spend more than a few minutes outside. Here, Lisa and Harriet at the wall on Thursday.

Sat Eve - Jacob (and umbrella) at the wall on Thursday.

Sat Eve - Lori (dressed for winter) at the wall on Thursday.

Sat Eve - Sam in the Jewish Quarter on Thursday.

Sat Eve - Israel Prize Winner and mitzvah hero, the Rabbanit Bracha Kapach at her home on Friday morning.

Sat Eve - the relatively low hotel occupancy rate made it possible for most of us to have rooms on the side of the King David Hotel that overlooks the Old City. Here, a view from the Hotel.

planting a tree in memory of ilan ramon, z"l

Sun - Meeting the Challenges of the Latest War - Meeting mitzvah hero Barbara Silverman, Founder of A Package From Home. Our group plans to pack boxes to be delivered to IDF soldiers. Here, Sam carries the last duffle bag containing some extra T shirts for packing.

Sun - Package From Home - sharing some amusing letters written by a Schecter class that are to be added to the packages.

Sun - Package From Home - Barbara shows us the standard "box" that is delivered to a soldier, and then tells us that due to a box delivery delay we'll have to pack plastic bags instead of boxes.

Sun - Package From Home - beginning to pick up items for the soldiers' bags.

Sun - Package From Home - grabbing a T shirt for a soldier.

Sun - Package From Home - tying the bags closed.

Sun - Every package contained, among other things, long underwear and socks.

Sun - Danny and Jacob get ready to start down the line to pick up materials.

Sun: Package From Home - picking up snacks for each bag.

Sun: Package From Home - refilling the supply box.

Sun: Package From Home - filling up the bags.

Sun: Package From Home - the assembly line operates smoothly.

Mon: Bait Cham - working to treat and find appropriate work for the mentally ill. Shumel Monk speaks about the program.

Mon: Bait Cham - purchasing silver Kiddish Cups, candle sticks, plates and other items created by a silversmith treated through the Bait Cham project.

Mon: Bait Cham - its founder describe its philosophy and mission.

Mon: Israel's Supreme Court - our group visits the court building while many who work there exit early, fearing a snow storm.

Mon: Supreme Court - main waiting hall from which the public enters the court rooms within the court building

Mon: Supreme Court - visiting a court room and learning about how the court operates.

Mon: Supreme Court - hearing a presentation on motions brought before the court relating to Jenin.

Mon: Supreme Court - trying out the bench.

Mon: Supreme Court - She's a natural...

Mon: Rafi Laderman, an IDF Reserve Major and third in command of the infantry unit that fought in Jenin, speaks to us about what it was like during the Jenin battle, and about the subsequent false accusations of a massacre. He also spoke about his efforts to provide incremental support to relatives of the IDF soldiers that died in Jenin.

Tues: Snow in Jerusalem?!

Tues: Snow - it was a beautiful sight, but almost completely shut down the city.

Tues: Dental Volunteers for Israel - despite huge difficulties caused by the weather, we were joined by Zev Birger, husband of the late Trudi Birger, z"l, the founder of the Dental Volunteers group. Mr. Birger described the volunteer dental program in Jerusalem, as well as Trudi's other efforts on behalf of the poor.

Tues: Dental Volunteers - Zev Birger, honoring the memory of mitzvah hero Trudi Birger by continuing her work for the poor of Jerusalem.

Tues: Almost time to depart. Our group gathers for the last time in the lobby of the King David Hotel for some last photographs.

Tues: Departure - a group by the piano.

Tues: Departure - another small group photo.

Tues: Departure - Our entire group gathers for a group photo just before leaving for home. It was a terrific experience for everyone!

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