Dear USY Alumni,
Many of you can recall how you felt davening shacharit next to the Grand Canyon as the sun rose. Or the pride of volunteering with your bus mates in a city as you were passing through. You remember the joy of bringing in Shabbat after a long adventure filled week. And you can smell the spices as you welcomed in the new week, singing Havdallah surrounded by your new lifelong friends. We had another successful summer bringing these moments and more to another generation of teens. This was all thanks to you.
Below you will find testimonials from our most recent trips. I also want to share USY’s new Immersive Experiences, our new year long calendar of events. These will enable teens to make new friendships and grow as leaders throughout the year and into the summer. We’re adjusting staff responsibilities to be able to deliver this new programming calendar. Read on to see all the exciting updates we have to share!
L’Shalom,
Julie Marder
Senior Director, USY
The Impact of Wheels
Below is a letter we received from a parent after they sent their son on Wheels. The names have been removed for privacy reasons:
I wanted to thank you. Truly and profoundly. We really twisted our USYers arm into going on this program. He was reluctant. He didn’t know a soul, and it would be his first time away from us for more than a night or two. He was nervous, and we were, too. He’s a heady kid, an overthinker. Adolescence has made him extremely insecure and anxious about pretty much everything–his hair, his clothes. All of it. Would he make friends? Would being a public school kid make it tough for him? Would he be able to manage sharing a room with strangers? I braced myself for teary phone calls, and even having to pick him up in the middle of the night from god knows where.
We knew something interesting was happening when…we didn’t hear from him. No texts. No calls. Radio silence. Finally after a couple of days, we worked up the nerve to reach out by text.
“Having fun?”
Yes.
“Making friends?”
Yes.
And then we saw the pictures. You have to understand–our USYer doesn’t grin. He is not a grinner. I don’t think I have a single picture of him grinning. He smiles, but grinning? That’s just not him. But there he was, day after day on that Instagram feed, his face all lit up!! It became this much-anticipated nighttime ritual for me and my husband–looking at how happy our son was with all these new friends! He seemed more assured of himself, looser and lighter. He looked so happy!
I don’t know what you do with these kids. But it’s clearly very, very special. We are so grateful to have found this program. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. THANK YOU.
Highlights from Wheels 2024
We are excited to share with you some wonderful testimonials and photos from our USY on Wheels participants. Their experiences have been truly remarkable, and we wanted to give you a glimpse into the highlights of their journeys this summer.
Wheels East
My highlight of the week was today. We started the day at the Zoo, and then we had free time and went shopping, which was so fun. Then we went to Sky Zone trampoline park, and after dinner, we had a secret activity!
-Ela
My favorite part of this week was celebrating Isaac and Joe’s birthdays!
-Naama
My favorite part of the week was when we got to go to the Coke factory and spend time together shopping. I really enjoy my free time because I get to grow closer to all of my friends. I also loved going to the baseball bat factory and Buc-ee’s!! I had an amazing week and am excited for next week!!!
-Maggie
Wheels Classic
This week, I had such an amazing time sightseeing in many different national parks. I’ve made so many memories with my friends and can’t wait for more fun!
– Gabe
This past week on wheels was so much fun. I especially enjoyed spending Shabbat in Montana and going to the markets in Seattle. I can’t wait for the new adventures we’ll have on the West Coast!
– Lyric
I love bonding with my fellow wheelniks, especially when our bus gets stuck on a hill at Pike Place Market in Seattle.
– Justin
I love Wheels because it is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to travel around the USA and see places you’ve never seen before but also make lifelong friends that you will have forever.
– Sarah
