Shai Argentar, an incoming senior at Buffalo Grove High School near Chicago, found the most meaningful moment of TJJ around a campfire.
It happened one night at the Bedouin tents.
There, under the stars, the teens made music together, shared wisdom, and opened up to one another — each person offering a piece of themselves to the group.
“The feeling of togetherness… really struck a chord with me,” Shai says, “in terms of the power of our group and of the Jewish community in general.”
For Shai, it wasn’t just a nice night. It was proof of something bigger — that connection, when it’s real, has power.
Shai came home from TJJ with a new appreciation for what a Jewish community can be when everyone shows up fully as themselves.