Saturday, February 7, 2015

Welcome four amazing GPM-JDC Entwine Global Jewish Service Corps fellows!

Gabriel Project Mumbai is excited to welcome four amazing GPM-JDC Entwine Global Jewish Service Corps fellows for GPM’s 12th session! GPM would like to give a hearty welcome to Tanya, Ethan, Ben and Emily who are spending the next two months providing literacy, nutrition and hygiene support to many hundreds of children in the slums of India.  The international participants join local Indian Jewish volunteers who are also working with vulnerable cildren in the slums of Mumbai.

This is a ‘first’ for GPM in that this cohort is gender equal (all our past sessions had more female than male participants). Like many of the over 100 alumni of Gabriel Project Mumbai, Tanya, Ethan, Ben and Emily come to GPM with varied and interesting life skills and training. What they do have in common is a passion for international development, working with the vulnerable in society, giving back to their own communities and devoting their lives to the better good.

Here is a glimpse into the participants of the current GPM-JDC Entwine volunteer session:

Tanya Barth
Tanya was born and raised in London. She participated in Shnat Netzer, a Gap Year program in Israel and went on to earn a degree in Middle Eastern Studies at Manchester University. Following graduation, she began working for a national charity called Mitzvah Day, coordinating social action projects for offices, schools and universities.

Tanya has been hugely involved in the youth movement RSY Netzer and was a group leader for one of their summer Israel Tours. For the past six years, she has been involved in running children’s summer camp, with the exception of one summer where she volunteered in Ghana with the organization ‘Tzedek.’ For the past year, Tanya has been involved in setting up a Social Justice themed Jewish Learning course called Takum Progressivi in London. She is passionate about Social Justice, exploring the world and spending time with friends.

Ethan Litvin
Ethan Litvin is a graduate of Randolph-Macon College and holds a B.A. in Psychology. After giving a presentation to one of his college classes about Anti-Semitism, Ethan was inspired to establish his own Jewish community at his small liberal arts college and founded the university’s Hillel. Since then, he has served as a Hillel Director at Virginia Commonwealth University, Assistant Director of Youth and Family services at the Weinstein JCC in Richmond VA, as well as a MASA Israel participant where he recently spent 6 months working, studying Hebrew, and volunteering in Israeli society.

Ethan has been very active in Young Adult Leadership at the Jewish Federation of Greater Richmond, as well as Relay for Life. Ethan hopes that his passion for non-profit management and Jewish communal work, will lead him to a bright future in helping to strengthen Jewish communities around the world.

Emily Weinstein


Emily is a Fordham University graduate with degrees in Anthropology, International Humanitarian Affairs and Visual Arts. For many years, Emily has worked in the sectors of humanitarian assistance, human rights protection and socioeconomic development in countries such as Ghana, Nicaragua and the United States. In Ghana, Emily facilitated an intestacy outreach program, implemented human rights clubs in local high schools and assisted the development of an English-assessment curriculum for child trafficking rescues.

Emily has also worked to develop programs at leading New York City based nonprofits dedicated to promoting international dialogue and education. This includes utilizing an art advocacy campaign promoting solidarity with survivors of the conflicts in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Somalia, as well as managing several projects dedicated to furthering the transformation of Ethiopia. Most recently, Emily worked as a consultant for a renowned humanitarian training institution.



Ben Scheiner

Originally from Boca Raton Florida, and now living in New York City, Ben Scheiner, graduated from Yeshiva University this past September with a BA in Philosophy and Political Science. Since then, Ben has worked at the Rapaport Diamond Auction and as a marketing intern for the off Broadway musical "Soul Doctor". 

In 2012, Ben traveled with JDC Entwine to Kharkov, Ukraine to connect with and volunteer in the local Jewish community. He also spent two summers in Dimona, Israel creating and facilitating summer camps for vulnerable and at-risk youth in Israel. Ben enjoys comedy and music in all forms and is an aspiring hiking and fitness buff during his free time. He is still determining his long term career goals and believes exploration will bring some answers

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