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September 5, 2003/Elul 8 5763, Vol. 55, No. 54
Phoenix teen travels to Israel, Poland
JESSICA BARBER
Staff Writer
Aaron Lavinsky, a junior at Sunnyslope High School in Phoenix, spent June and July exploring his Jewish identity in Poland and Israel.
Lavinsky, son of Deborah and Rabbi Arthur Lavinsky of Beth El Congregation, took a six-week trip with United Synagogue Youth to visit Polish ghettos, concentration camps and many sites in Israel.
"I really wanted to go on this trip to experience Poland," says 16-year-old Lavinsky. "Not many people my age get to have this experience. It's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."
Lavinsky spent eight days in Poland visiting ghettos and concentration camps including Warsaw, Krakow, Auschwitz-Birkenau, Majdanek, Sobibor and Treblinka.
"Majdanek really stands out in my mind," recalls Lavinsky. "Everything is still intact. They said that within 48 hours, the camp could be up and running. There are scratch marks on the gas chamber walls. Everything is still there."
Lavinsky also felt that Majdanek was the least commercialized of the camps.
"At Auschwitz, they were selling ice cream," he says. "It was really disgusting."
Although the experience was deeply emotional for Lavinsky, he attempted to keep his emotions in check.
"Everyone deals with it in their own way," he says. "My mindset was to look at it, let it sink in, but don't get too attached to it. When people are crying, they miss a lot."
After exploring Poland, Lavinsky and 44 other trip participants headed to Israel for a five-week stint of touring, prayer and Israeli culture.
"I did everything," says Lavinsky of his time in Israel. "We went to all the historical sites that were safe to go to. Temples, Tiberius and Rabin Square in Tel Aviv" were just a few stops along the way.
However, Lavinsky experienced firsthand the type of terror that runs through Israeli society.
"When we were on Ben Yehuda Street, there was a loud explosion," he remembers. "People were running and screaming. But it turned out that a bus tire had exploded and rumbled the ground. People panicked. It's like post-traumatic stress syndrome or shell shock."
Despite the incident, Lavinsky was not overly concerned for his safety while in Israel.
"It's really not that bad," he says.
Lavinsky and trip participants, all high-school students from the United States and Canada, spent nights at youth hostels or in kibbutzim. They also spent about a week with an Israeli youth group.
"They are very different, but very cool," he says. "It was a lot of fun."
Now back in Phoenix, Lavinsky believes that the trip encouraged him to become more religious and tied to his Jewish roots.
"After visiting Poland - that's where most of my family came from - I am more than ever (interested in my history)," he says. "You get more in touch with things. It's hard to explain, but it was an amazing experience."
Contact the writer at jessica_barber@jewishaz.com.
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