Not Kansas

Yona Cohen
CEO

Yona grew up in Tzfat and received her BSC in Electronic Engineering from the Technion Institute in Haifa. She worked for over 20 years in the Israeli hi-tech industry, and has several registered patents on her name. She has an MBA focusing on Non-Profit Management from the University of Haifa. Yona joined Livnot in 2019 with a vision of strengthening Jewish identity and connectivity. She Lives in Tzfat with her husband Yossi and their five kids.

Activities Manager

Throughout his incredible life journey traveling the world seeking spiritual truth, for 12 years, mystical scholar Eyal Binyamin Karoutchi passed over a decade of extensive study of the teachings found within the American Indians, Buddhism, and Hinduism. He became an expert of this wisdom through his experiences living in monasteries.
Returning to his native land of Israel, he began to learn the secret wisdom Judaism with the same clarity as the other philosophies he had studied.

Eyal Binyamin Karoutchi was a senior lecturer and general manager at a spiritual center for Jewish consciousness for 11 years. Today works in livnot as activity coordinator.
He is certified in a variety of healing modalities such as CBT and NLP, and serves the community as a life coach, marriage counselor, mediator, communication advisor, As a certified Yoga instructor he teaches yoga and Jewish meditation all over Israel and worldwide.

Educator

Shlomo Tal was born and raised in Kazakhstan in the Former Soviet Union. At the age of 15 he made Aliyah on his own, and studied Jewish philosophy and spirituality for a decade at various schools around the country. He served in the army as a counter-terror instructor. Shlomo fell in love with Tzfat 18 years ago and has lived there for the last three years as a program coordinator at Livnot, along with his wife, Orly, and their six children. He enjoys music, nature, painting, martial arts, and extreme freedom of thought.

Senior Educator & Nature Guide

Michael was born and raised in Kansas City. He received a degree in Broadcast Journalism from the University of Missouri-Columbia School of Journalism before moving to Israel in 1979. Michael served in the IDF Paratroops, was a nature guide in the Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel, led exploration teams for the Israel Cave Research Center, spent time as a shepherd in the Galilee, was an organic farmer, and is a licenced tour guide. Since 1991, he’s been working with Livnot U’Lehibanot leading educational hiking trips, teaching classes, and keeping in touch with alumni.

Things he has been quoted as saying:

• In a perfect world, your cave guide would not have claustrophobia.
• Before you die, try to farm for at least a few minutes.
• There is no such thing as a Jewmometer.

Michael also runs “The Jewish Snake Project,” in which he uses live snakes to teach groups about Jewish Values. He lives with his family (and snakes) in the Golan Heights.

National Service Women

Banot Sherut Leumi (National Service Women) are young women who serve in different educational and infrastructure needs throughout the country as an alternative to army service. All Livnot programs include two Banot Sherut who have gone through intensive educational training. These young women lead the programs as Madrichot, critical in the building of community within the group and in all aspects of the service-learning program. The 2018-19 Banot Sherut Leumi are Ilana Americus, Maayan Yoselis and Dafna Greifner.

Resident Scholar

Rav Meir is a recognized scholar in the field of Jewish History, specifically the history of Jewish mysticism, philosophy and medicine. He holds a rabbinic ordination from Yeshiva University, a Ph.D. with Distinction from Harvard University and a Master’s from Yale University. Rabbi Sendor lectures widely on his specialties and holds many classes on various Torah topics for all levels.

Program Director

Originally from Syracuse, NY, Meir received his BA in American History and Political Science from Tulane University and his MS in Resource Management from SUNY College of Environmental Science & Forestry. He arrived in Israel in 1992, served in the Nahal Infantry Unit before moving to Kibbutz Sde Eliyahu. On Kibbutz, Meir was Assistant Manager of the Fisheries.

Meir joined Livnot in 2002 as a Program Coordinator and is currently Director of Programs and Alumni. He and his wife Nechama, live with their six children in Hispin on the Golan.​

Founder & Executive Director

Aharon Botzer and his wife Miriam founded Livnot U’Lehibanot in 1980.  Aharon is the organization’s visionary, and has dedicated his life to continually developing unique and relevant programs to strengthen Jewish identity among the unaffiliated. His creativity and wisdom are the driving forces behind Livnot’s growth and expansion, both in programs and in the potential of tapping into Livnot’s many assets and resources.

Aharon was born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio, and has a B.A. in Education from Ohio University.  He spent over a year hitchhiking and travelling in Central America, coming to the realization that having a Jewish identity is a treasure.  He came to Israel in 1971 to study in Yeshiva, eventually arriving in Tzfat to teach English and Geography to high school students.  He has been a licensed tour guide since 1984.

Aharon served as a non-combatant during his regular army service, and until age 56, he volunteered to serve in an infantry unit. Miriam and Aharon are blessed with seven children and many, many grandchildren.

Marketing Manager

Yaniv is a native Israeli who moved to Tzfat 10 years ago. He has his BA in Economics and Business Administration, and completed an LLB in Law.

Yaniv has years of great experience in management and marketing. Here at Livnot, he handles all of the amazing activities that go on in the Livnot campus, both for Israeli groups and for Tourists.