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To be certified in Permaculture! To be enriched by Jewish culture!
MORE ASSISTANCE NEEDED!
I have practiced sustainable agriculture since my college days and at many a community garden through AmeriCorps since then. Years of hard work and community in the garden has been extremely rewarding. In my time, I have made lots of friends through encounters at work and in the world that is urban ag. in Knoxville. I even had the opportunity of creating a community garden at Pond Gap Elementary School last year, which students now help in and eat from in the school cafeteria on a regular basis, with parents and teachers slowly coming on board! Those tasks of weeding and more are what I call garden therapy, as it is one of the most uplifting spiritual acts for me. There is such a diversity in this garden world, of people and plants and bugs ("good" and "bad" ones) that helps me to understand what it means to commune with others. More recently have I begun to commune once again with the diversity of Jewish community, which has helped to remind me of a cultural grounding that I have that helps with both the reflection and acting out of good practices and study for everyday life.
A trip to Israel will culminate two important aspects of my life, that of spirituality and permaculture, into hopefully a trip that I will learn, feel, see, grow and more from. As I have long awaited an opportunity to receive my permaculture certification, a certificate that demonstrates one's knowledge in producing food and building natural structures within the confines, flows, geography and resources of one's local ecosystem, the opportunity to work on the Hava and Adam Farm in Modin through Eco-Israel was one that I couldn't pass up. The program is from February 16-July 16, 2015. What better way to earn a certificate that can be earned in a week than to earn it in 5 months in an intensive, immersed experience, and with fellow Jews at that!
That's right, I've recently become very in touch once again with my roots, traditions, practices and a community that I grew up with. I look forward to communing with "family" as we grow food together, learn from each other, celebrate together and are enlightened by a deep connection to the land of the Fertile Crescent that is Israel, a Holy Land for many people, but one that I think that I can be enriched from by sharing in ancestral traditions and culture that still lives today through Jewish community. Judaism has a deeply integrated ethnic and religious/spiritual culture that I wish to learn greatly from, from building a Sukkah with lots of gourds hanging from it here in the states, to going on a traditional pilgrimage hike during Passover in Israel.
Half of the program cost has been guaranteed through grant funds, but I need more assistance than I originally thought for the program, insurance and miscellaneous expenses not covered. My new goal is $2700! I have by the beginning of February to pay the remaining $3200 for room and board!
Total Room and Board: $6200
Total Spending Money: $1500
TOTAL Program Cost: $7700
MASA grant awarded: $3000
MASA needs-based scholarship: TBD
Personal Savings: $2000
TOTAL Remaining Costs: $2700
Please note that as I will have an internationally recognized Certificate in Permaculture upon the conclusion of this trip, I would feel both obliged and excited, in exchange for a donation or just because, to teach any workshops in permaculture practice. Let me know and we'll schedule for when I return!
Those who feel comfortable can give me written prayers for your loved ones to be received at the Wailing Wall.
Thank you in advance for any support that you could provide! You can reach me on Facebook as Matt Callo or here for further inquires.
Best,
Matt Callo
To be certified in Permaculture! To be enriched by Jewish culture!
MORE ASSISTANCE NEEDED!
I have practiced sustainable agriculture since my college days and at many a community garden through AmeriCorps since then. Years of hard work and community in the garden has been extremely rewarding. In my time, I have made lots of friends through encounters at work and in the world that is urban ag. in Knoxville. I even had the opportunity of creating a community garden at Pond Gap Elementary School last year, which students now help in and eat from in the school cafeteria on a regular basis, with parents and teachers slowly coming on board! Those tasks of weeding and more are what I call garden therapy, as it is one of the most uplifting spiritual acts for me. There is such a diversity in this garden world, of people and plants and bugs ("good" and "bad" ones) that helps me to understand what it means to commune with others. More recently have I begun to commune once again with the diversity of Jewish community, which has helped to remind me of a cultural grounding that I have that helps with both the reflection and acting out of good practices and study for everyday life.
A trip to Israel will culminate two important aspects of my life, that of spirituality and permaculture, into hopefully a trip that I will learn, feel, see, grow and more from. As I have long awaited an opportunity to receive my permaculture certification, a certificate that demonstrates one's knowledge in producing food and building natural structures within the confines, flows, geography and resources of one's local ecosystem, the opportunity to work on the Hava and Adam Farm in Modin through Eco-Israel was one that I couldn't pass up. The program is from February 16-July 16, 2015. What better way to earn a certificate that can be earned in a week than to earn it in 5 months in an intensive, immersed experience, and with fellow Jews at that!
That's right, I've recently become very in touch once again with my roots, traditions, practices and a community that I grew up with. I look forward to communing with "family" as we grow food together, learn from each other, celebrate together and are enlightened by a deep connection to the land of the Fertile Crescent that is Israel, a Holy Land for many people, but one that I think that I can be enriched from by sharing in ancestral traditions and culture that still lives today through Jewish community. Judaism has a deeply integrated ethnic and religious/spiritual culture that I wish to learn greatly from, from building a Sukkah with lots of gourds hanging from it here in the states, to going on a traditional pilgrimage hike during Passover in Israel.
Half of the program cost has been guaranteed through grant funds, but I need more assistance than I originally thought for the program, insurance and miscellaneous expenses not covered. My new goal is $2700! I have by the beginning of February to pay the remaining $3200 for room and board!
Total Room and Board: $6200
Total Spending Money: $1500
TOTAL Program Cost: $7700
MASA grant awarded: $3000
MASA needs-based scholarship: TBD
Personal Savings: $2000
TOTAL Remaining Costs: $2700
Please note that as I will have an internationally recognized Certificate in Permaculture upon the conclusion of this trip, I would feel both obliged and excited, in exchange for a donation or just because, to teach any workshops in permaculture practice. Let me know and we'll schedule for when I return!
Those who feel comfortable can give me written prayers for your loved ones to be received at the Wailing Wall.
Thank you in advance for any support that you could provide! You can reach me on Facebook as Matt Callo or here for further inquires.
Best,
Matt Callo
To be certified in Permaculture! To be enriched by Jewish culture!