History

In 1998 a partnership between the region of Ibim and San Diego was established with the support of the United Jewish Federation. Many projects became part of this partnership, which include missions to Israel, teacher exchange programs, and communication between elementary school students. At the time, Gary Jacobs served as one of the members of the committee of this partnership.	Click here to learn more about JITLI founders Gary and Jerri-Ann Jacobs.
As different members of the committee thought and came up with different connections and projects for the new sister regions, Jacobs and Yaacov Schneider, who was then the Israeli shaliach to San Diego, worked as a team to look for an original and unique project.

First, the creation of a building with different recreational facilities to be built in the Negev was considered, but Jacobs was not satisfied. Always being interested in the education as well as the growth and development of the young people in his community, he was determined to create a program that would provide committed individuals with the necessary opportunities to become leaders within their communities. In search for a project that would satisfy his desire to have a positive effect in the leaders of tomorrow, Jacobs and Schneider traveled the entire State of Israel, covering the North and South in one day. After this long day journey, they had spotted the perfect candidate. As they came to the region of Sha'ar Hanegev, a city very close to the partner region of Ibim, these two philanthropists met with the principal of the Sha'ar Hanegev regional school, Arale Rochstein, and with the mayor of the city, Shai Hermesh- now treasurer of the United Jewish Agency and a member of Knesset. The team came up with a project to bring young individuals from the two different regions together, and include teenagers from neighboring Arab regions as well. This was the birth of the JITLI program.

The original idea was to include these 4 different groups: American Jews, Israeli Jews, Israeli Arabs, and Palestinians. The group would visit Spain, as a neutral ground with significantly peaceful historical relations between Jews and Arabs, and various parts of Israel, including the Israeli and Palestinian homes. Another characteristic of the program was that every group would consist of 5 girls and 5 boys, and they would be guided by young and adult, counselors from every region. Although not every year could incorporate all four groups, each year has been a success in its own way. The trip now includes a San Diego portion to start it off which lets the American groups also show their home.

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