Three Journeys, One Jewish Future
Posted on 08/21/2026 @ 06:30 AM
By Dr. Carly Orshan, Senior Director of Strategic Initiatives, Teen Department, and Congregational Education
conversation that stays with them, a place they visit that changes the way they see the world.
Sometimes, one experience can become the beginning of a lifelong connection to the Jewish community, Israel, and their own identity.
That is the power behind CAJE’s Miami teen programs.
Through IsraelNow Miami, Diller Teen Fellows Miami, and Miami’s Leo Martin March of the Living, CAJE meets teens at these different moments with opportunities to connect, learn, lead, and discover their place in the Jewish community.
And sometimes, the world reminds us just how important that work is.
When a Survivor’s Story Meets the Digital World
This past April, Holocaust Survivor Laszlo Selly stood with our Miami teens on the railroad tracks at Auschwitz-Birkenau.
Laszlo, a twin, reflected on the fate that could have awaited him had he arrived there as a child: how he might have been selected by Josef Mengele for medical experiments and how quickly his life could have ended.
Last week, as part of our recruitment launch for the 2027 Miami March of the Living, we shared a video of that moment on social media.
Watch Laszlo share his story with our teens at Auschwitz-Birkenau.
After the International March of the Living amplified the video to a wider audience, alongside messages of gratitude came a flood of hateful responses.
Some mocked or denied the Holocaust.
Some attacked Jews collectively.
Others immediately invoked Israel and Gaza in response to a Survivor sharing his Holocaust testimony.
One commenter wrote that Jews “love genocide.”
Another called the Holocaust “made up.”
Beneath a comment that read, “Never forget, never forgive,” someone responded: “we will do it for real this time.”
The video said nothing about Israel. It made no political argument.
It was simply a Holocaust Survivor telling students what could have happened to him on those very tracks.
IsraelNow Miami: Beginning with Belonging
For rising eighth graders attending Miami-Dade public schools or non-Jewish private schools, IsraelNow Miami combines community building, experiential learning, and a spring break trip to Israel.
Teens build Jewish friendships while beginning to explore their own relationship with Israel, the Jewish people, and their Jewish identity.
Registration for IsraelNow Miami closes October 19th. Please share: IsraelNow Flyer
Diller Teen Fellows Miami: Discovering the Leader Within
For 10th and 11th graders, Diller Teen Fellows Miami provides a year of leadership development, Jewish learning, tikkun olam, immersive Shabbatonim, relationships with Israeli peers, and summer travel.
Fellows practice listening, questioning, navigating different perspectives, and turning their ideas into action.
Applications for Diller Teen Fellows Miami close October 1st. Please share: Diller Flyer
Miami’s Leo Martin March of the Living: From Memory to Responsibility
For 12th graders, Miami’s Leo Martin March of the Living brings Jewish history, identity, memory, and responsibility together.
Teens encounter the Holocaust in the places where it happened, learn alongside Survivors and educators, explore contemporary antisemitism, and consider what it means to carry memory forward.
As fewer Holocaust Survivors remain to share their stories firsthand, our teens must become the people who carry their testimony forward.
What happened after we shared Laszlo’s story reminds us that they must also be prepared to recognize when that history is denied, distorted, mocked, or weaponized.
Applications for the 2027 Miami March of the Living close October 19th. Please share: MOTL Flyer
Help Us Carry This Work Forward
Every opportunity for a young person to learn from a Holocaust Survivor, or from a 2G or 3G descendants carrying forward their families’ testimony, is precious.
So is every opportunity to strengthen a teen’s Jewish identity, deepen their connection to Israel and the Jewish people, and give them the knowledge and confidence to navigate antisemitism, misinformation, and difficult conversations.
Your support helps CAJE bring Survivors and 2G and 3G descendants into meaningful learning experiences with the next generation, ensuring that Survivor testimony continues to be heard while equipping Jewish teens with the knowledge, critical-thinking skills, and Jewish confidence they need to navigate an increasingly complex world.
When hate attempts to drown out a Survivor’s voice, our response is to ensure that voice is heard by even more young people.
One Community, Many Ways to Connect
There is no single way to be a Jewish teen, and there should not be only one doorway into Jewish life.
Through the website JTeen Miami, teens and families can discover opportunities throughout Miami-Dade, including youth groups, leadership programs, travel experiences, service opportunities, events, and more.
Our goal is not simply to enroll teens in programs.
It is to help young people find their place in Jewish life and give them the relationships, knowledge, experiences, and confidence to navigate the world as emerging Jewish adults.
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