Dalia
- From:
- Buenos Aires, Argentina
The Interview
Dalia, tell us your Jewish story:
Wow? Where to start? My whole life I went to a Jewish school here in Buenos Aires, called Shalom Aleichem.
There I learned a lot about Jewish values, traditions and history. (Until The Podcast Fellowship) everything I learned about Judaism was from there.
How did your family get to Argentina?
They were from Russia and Poland. They wanted to leave Europe because of the issues there. At the time, Argentina had a growing Jewish community. Some of my family went to Entre Rios, which was a Jewish settlement, and the rest came to Buenos Aires.
What kind of profession is your family involved in?
My father is a lawyer, my mother is a dance teacher. I am studying tourism. In fact, I work for a Jewish organization called Menora.
How did you hear about TPF?
A friend of mine who now lives in Israel sent me a message about TPF. She knows I love to learn about Judaism and we both love to practice our English, so it was the perfect combination!
Tell us about your experience with TPF:
It has gone very well. I started about 2 months ago. My podcast mentor is Ezequiel Chababo. We discuss the podcasts for 20-30 minutes and he always has something to add, it's all very spontaneous, which I enjoy. I have a lot of podcasts in my mind and I am growing.
Have you ever done one-on-one learning before?
No. I have taken many Jewish classes in a group, but never this "chavruta" learning. I enjoy how personalized this kind of learning is.
What did you think about the offer of a stipend for discussing podcasts?
I don't do the podcasts specifically for the money, because where I work I receive a salary. TPF is good enough that it doesn't depend on the money, but of course, the money helps!
What are some of your favorite topics to listen to?
Wow, I have a lot. I love podcasts that speak about ourselves and our Jewish identity. My favorite podcast is "Why Be Jewish?" by Rabbi Orlofsky. It was the first one I heard, and it shocked me and made me love TPF.
How has TPF helped you grow?
One way is that I always had a question about why Judaism pushes away people who are interested in converting, and I have never heard a compelling explanation. I recently heard a podcast on this topic which made the issue so clear to me. Now I feel I can explain it to my friends who want to become Jewish.
Do you have any friends in Buenos Aires that also do TPF?
Yes, I have my own club! Here at Menora we are telling everyone about The Podcast Fellowship! There are at least 6 other students I recruited to TPF.