Voice of Our Youth
My name is Daniella Beswick. For the most part I go by Dani and I’m going to be writing for the Cape Jewish Chronicle’s Voice of the Youth Column. I am so excited to be writing this column and can’t wait to share my opinions and feelings about the world!
I live with my mom, dad, brother and our numerous pets. I am a 2nd year university student, studying English Literature and History at UCT — although I do like to joke that my studies are merely a side hustle. I am a Progressive Jew, who grew up at Temple Israel and Netzer. Now, I teach at the Temple Israel’s cheder, as well as do private Bnei Mitzvah tutoring and am the Mazkira, or director, of Netzer, the Progressive Jewish youth movement. Needless to say, I am a busy bee and honestly love it that way.
In working with the youth in my Jewish community, it became clear quite quickly that I wanted to be a teacher in my professional life. I am passionate about education and am determined to use that passion to make a difference in the lives of the students I teach and will teach in the future. English and History have always been my favourite subjects and, to be able to teach them in the future, will be an absolute dream.
I took a gap year in 2022 and did Shnat Netzer, mostly in Israel. The year involved another person and me being thrown in with 13 other Netzerniks from Australia. We spent three months in Jerusalem doing a programme called Machon, in which there were informal classes on everything to do with Judaism, Israel, spirituality, current affairs — and everything in between. There were people from all over the world from all the different youth movements.
From there we moved to the Negev where we volunteered at a youth village called Nitzana. We worked on the farm and in the school. It was my experience of the school that made it clear to me that I want to be a teacher.
In the middle of my gap year, we all went to different Union for Reform Judaism youth camps across the United States and worked there for around two months.
Back in Israel we volunteered at Kibbutz Harduf in the garden and learned what it means to be part of a Kvutzah. We had classes in Hebrew, Arabic, drama, and coexistence.
Shnat was an experience that showed me how important youth movements are to our Jewish community. During the year, I learnt more about myself and why I align myself so strongly with Netzer and the Progressive community. Our group of 15 became a family and I made strong friendships that I know I will have for the rest of my life. Through hagshamah, the actualisation of our ideology, my passion for the youth movement space and the impact it has on the Jewish youth was reignited because of the connection I made, places I saw and the experiences I had. It inspired me to come back and work with Netzer to make sure that the youth movement experience is one that all can share and love.
Being in a youth movement space is vitally important because it creates a safe space for our Judaism to be celebrated without it having to be explained or justified. It is a safe space to explore identities and opinions, question and converse and, most of all, to be uniquely ourselves, while making the best friends in the whole world.
My Jewish identity is arguably one of my biggest and most important ones. My Judaism has allowed me to understand the world in a unique way and experience religion in a way that I have had the ability to make my own.
• Published in the May 2024 issue – Click here to start reading.
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