Jerusalem—Thirty-five Jewish women from around the world who are also fashion industry mavens will be experiencing the journey of a lifetime this month, seeing Israel beyond the headlines while connecting with Israel’s fashion leaders.
The special delegation, July 26–Aug. 3, will include Jewish fashionistas from the US, Canada, Australia, Estonia, Greece, Panama and South Africa. For eight days, these women will travel from Safed in the north to the Dead Sea and Masada in the Judean Desert, on a one-of-a-kind trip to strengthen their Jewish identities, connect them to their Jewish homeland and inspire them to return home and change the world.
The trip, organized by the Maryland-based Jewish Women’s Renaissance Project (JWRP) and Israel’s Ministry of Diaspora Affairs, will also bring the women to key spots on Israel’s fashion map, from the TLVstyle fashion boutique tour and the “Fash-Tech” co-work space WMN for women entrepreneurs in Tel Aviv, to jewelry and fashion designers in Jerusalem. This special trip, which is the first of many planned industry-specific trips aimed to bring Jewish values to key influencers in society, will also feature a JWRP Fashion Week event in Tel Aviv with leading Israeli fashion names.
Among these standouts from the global fashion world are Annie Raphael, of Toronto, who, with her husband, co-owns one of the leading wholesale fashion agencies in Canada, called SlavinRaphael; Dahlia Foroutan, of Los Angeles, an Iranian Jew and Hollywood costume designer for stars and shows including ABC’s “My Wife & Kids,” the Disney Channel’s “Hannah Montana” and Nickelodeon’s “Bella & the Bulldogs”; Emily Fine, a trend forecaster in New York who consults with top clothing and footwear outlets and Mindy Scheier, of New Jersey, who teamed up with Tommy Hilfiger to launch a line of adaptive clothing for children with special needs (and whose story was featured in People Magazine: http://www.people.com/article/runway-dreams-teams-up-tommy-hilfiger-adaptive-clothing-line).
Since 2009, more than 8,000 Jewish mothers from 150 partner organizations in 26 countries spanning several continents including Australia, Africa, Europe, North America and South America have experienced the Momentum trips. Participants commit to getting involved in activities when they return home, including community events, Israel engagement programs, Jewish education, global learning, leadership development and Momentum Israel missions for husbands.
For more information about the trip please visit http://www.jwrp.org/sites/default/themes/bricktheme/pdfs/JWRP_Fashion_Trip.pdf.
