FIDF South Texas Chapter Holds Inaugural YP Event

Close to 50 supporters of Friends of the Israel Defense Forces (FIDF) attended the FIDF South Texas Chapter’s Inaugural Young Professionals event, “Different Backgrounds –Same Mission.” The February 18 event began with a happy hour followed by a thought-provoking panel discussion about minorities in Israel.

The Young Professionals Panel was made up of four Israelis with very different perspectives, but with one common mission – serving in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and protecting Israel. The panelists– Jonathan Elkhoury , Baruch Moore , Majd Bader , and Atif Abo Naji - all belong to Reservists on Duty, a nonprofit organization that works to help counter anti-Semitism and the BDS (boycott, divestment and sanctions) movement.

Jonathan Elkhoury is a gay, Christian, Lebanese refugee, who now lives in Israel. He and his family were forced to leave Lebanon for Israel after the Lebanese Civil War because his father was a member of the South Lebanon Army (SLA), which was supported by the IDF. Jonathan has worked as a journalist, political consultant, and a customer success representative at a company that brings tour groups to explore Israel.

Baruch Moore, who served in the Parachutes Unit of the IDF, is completing his MBA with an emphasis on the mixed results of journalism, politics, and tourism on the discussion of peace.

Majd Bader is a 26-year-old member of the Druze community in Israel. He completed his mandatory service in the IDF with the Golani special forces. Majd works in tech at an established start-up and studies at IDC Herzliya university in Israel.

Atif Abo Naji is a 21-year-old Arab-Israeli citizen, born and raised in the city of Nazareth, the largest Arab city in Israel. In his third year of studying law, Atif has written many articles in Arabic about peace and the situation of the Arab minority in Israel. Between 2017-2019, he led a research project about the Jewish roots of many Arabs that came from the West Bank and the Galilee. Currently, he is leading a new research project about how developing a new Israeli nationality can help the peace process.

The panel’s moderator was FIDF South Texas Chapter Chair Eyal Shavitzky. Shavitzky grew up in Queens, N.Y., and Ra’anana, Israel. He served in the IDF between 1999-2003. In 2006, while attending law school, he was re-called to serve in his unit during the Second Lebanon War for approximately 60 days. He has been involved with FIDF for almost a decade.
“A major priority of our 2020 plan is the establishment of a Young Professionals Division,” said Shavitzky. “Our aim is to provide young leaders in Houston the opportunity to become more involved with FIDF, and to learn about the services that the organization provides to the courageous soldiers of the IDF. Additionally, we intend to offer fun and engaging networking and socializing events. Our most recent event exemplified both goals. We plan on hosting a number of similar events to continue raising awareness about FIDF and engaging the broader community.”

“Our aim with the event was to have an open discussion about the different cultures that make up Israeli society and the challenges that they sometimes face,” said FIDF South Texas Young Professionals Chair Michael Golen . “I hope that the audience’s perspective was broadened and that the panelists had a positive experience in Texas.”

“We are very excited that the Young Professionals group has come together so strongly in such a short time. A group of very dedicated individuals have worked so hard to make this the first of many great events that seek to engage young professionals in the mission of FIDF and garner support for the men and women who serve,” said FIDF South Texas Executive Director Julie Jerden.