Israel Lacrosse’s programs in Israel made a triumphant return this winter, with 55 young Jewish Americans experiencing the lacrosse journey through the Holy Land.
From December 21, 2025, to January 3, 2026, 30 high school boys and girls on our annual Winter Service Trip and 25 college men and women on our inaugural Winter Session felt the pulse of Israel. It marked the program’s first return since it paused in 2023 following October 7.
The war forced cancelations for our trips over the last few years, but in 2025, the ILA was able to reopen the door to Israel for participants. The timelines for marketing and planning were shortened, and the organization wasn’t sure what the reception would be.
What happened was more than anyone expected.
“The level of interest we saw was inspiring,” said JT Jennings, the ILA’s Vice President of Marketing, Communications, and Technology. “After some challenging years, it was incredible to see our Israel trips come back together so successfully. It was immensely powerful for me to watch these kids travel halfway across the world to connect with their Judaism, learn, grow, and play lacrosse here.”
2025–26 Winter Programs in Israel
The 2025–26 edition of our winter programs in Israel included another major change: the introduction of the College Session Trip. Its participants engaged in many similar activities to those on the High School Service Trip, but each trip has its own focus. The College Session Trip focused on national team evaluation – the High School Service Trip held a greater educational element.
Participants of both trips experienced all the essentials of Israel – a tour of Jerusalem’s Old City and the Kotel, floating in the Dead Sea, hiking Masada at sunrise, riding camels, exploring Tel Aviv, and more. Each deepened their Jewish identities and understandings through visits to Yad Vashem and the Nova Festival Memorial Site. Shabbat dinners in Israeli homes and meaningful exposure to Israeli culture defined the trips as well.
The connections and memories built on both trips will last a lifetime.
“She had the greatest time in Israel. It was life changing for her,” said Neil Grunberg, the father of a High School Trip participant. “She and a crew of 8 or 9 boys and girls from the trip are all flying to meet in a couple of weeks for a reunion – their bond is that incredible.”
High School Service Trip
Learning held a high priority in the High School Service Trip.
Participants saw many corners of Israel, from the famous tourist destinations to the somber memorials marking past tragedies. They spent time with locals, eating dinner in Israeli homes, playing lacrosse with their Israeli peers, and breathing in everything Israel.
“It was amazing to see just how connected I really am to Israel,” a High School Service Trip participant said. “I felt at home when I was there.”
The visit to the Nova Festival Memorial Site was one of the most difficult parts of the trip, but it was necessary. The country of Israel will always carry the victims of October 7 with it, and the ILA holds firmly onto the memory of Mor Cohen, a stalwart in the Israel Lacrosse community who was murdered in the attack.
“It’s very different being there in person and seeing it for yourself,” one High School Trip participant said after seeing the Nova Festival Memorial Site. “Seeing Mor (Cohen)’s memorial was very powerful. Seeing that he was a lacrosse player as well and all the stories about everyone there, it was very interesting to see that it could have been anyone.”
Members of the trip also spent time traveling to Israeli elementary and secondary schools and leading gym class clinics to introduce lacrosse to children. This is a standard practice in the ILA that dates to the organization’s inception. Growing the game from the grassiest roots has remained a key recruiting tool for lacrosse in Israel, and it brought about some of the trip’s best highlights.
“My daughter’s best memory might be when she introduced lacrosse to a girl in a gym class, who showed up later that day with her mom, gifting chocolates and wanting to register for lacrosse,” Grunberg said.
High School Service Trip participants stayed in Ashkelon at the Regina Goren Hotel, with beach views and a short walk to The Daniel Kraft Family National Training Center, the first of its kind in the Middle East. They also competed in the ILA’s Hanukkah 8’s Tournament alongside their peers and native-born Israeli athletes. Participants received high-level instruction from current Israel National Team players and coaches.
RootOne, a proud partner of the ILA, made much of this possible. As part of the Jewish Education Project, RootOne helps thousands of Jewish teens travel to Israel every year to encourage a path for ongoing, meaningful Jewish engagement. The organization’s generous grant funding supported the High School Service Trip participants.
Thanks to RootOne’s generosity, unforgettable Jewish bonds were forged in Israel this winter.
“I didn’t really know that many people going into it, but I’m leaving here with a lot more friends than I came in with – friends I’m hoping to see outside of this trip or at an Israel Lacrosse event,” a High School Trip participant said. “I built a lot of good connections and relationships here, and I hope to see those flourish throughout my life.”
Seth Mahler, VP of Programming and primary organizer of the trips, said:
“Our athletes, coaches, and staff had an incredibly meaningful trip, strengthening their connection to Israel and to one another while gaining a deeper appreciation for our people’s resilience. Taking the field alongside their Jewish brothers and sisters at the Hanukkah 8’s tournament was a powerful experience. We’re proud to have brought groups back to Israel since October 2023 and are already looking ahead to the next trips.”
College Session Trip
As the ILA and the sport of lacrosse have grown in Israel, so too have the demands of the organization’s national teams. Talent is up, domestically and throughout the diaspora, and Israel Lacrosse is always in search of improvement and progress on the biggest international stages. The creation of the College Session Trip affords aspiring Israeli athletes the opportunity to be seen and for the ILA to measure the skill at its disposal.
Many of the key decision-makers within the ILA’s National Team structure were present during high-performance sessions. What they saw brought Israel one step closer to its roster for the European Sixes Lacrosse Championships this fall, which will mark the start of Olympic qualifying. Future College Session Trips will bear major weight in the rosters Israel sends to future tournaments and perhaps LA in 2028, should the country qualify.
Members of the College Session Trip relaxed in modern apartments with balconies overlooking the Mediterranean in Ashkelon. Their living arrangements were just minutes from the National Lacrosse Center, which they frequented. National Team staff conducted NCAA Division I-style training sessions that pushed athletes and aided the organization with formal evaluations.
The trip included education, too. Our college participants had opportunities to learn directly about sports management from ILA officials with loads of hands-on experience in the industry.
Will We See You This Summer?
The next ILA trips for high school and college athletes will take place this summer: our Summer Service Trip and Summer Session.
Want to register your interest? Follow these links for the College Session Trip or High School Service Trip and take your first step toward an unforgettable Holy Land lacrosse experience!