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Miami Palmetto High School senior Gili Horwitz moved to Miami from Israel. Since then, she has thrown herself into school and activities.
She’s the current president of the President’s Council of Friendship Circle. She learned about Friendship Circle in seventh grade. She’s been volunteering since then, hanging out with special needs kids.
“We’re their friends,” she says. “I go there every week and I hang out with the kids.
Whether it’s karate, dance art, music, tennis, or whatever sport, it is always an amazing time with all of them, and they never fail to put a smile on my face. Over the years I’ve formed genuine bonds with many kids and continue to every time.”
Horwitz participates in the Sunday program as well as field trips, summer camp, winter camp and no school fun days.
Horwitz says being a program volunteer has changed the way she looks at special needs children.
“It changed my perspective on life,” she says. “What I love the most is that the kids appreciate everything. Everything is looked at in a positive light. It fills me with joy every time I see them.”
Because of her commitment to special needs kids, she also volunteers at the special education department at Palmetto.
“I do sports with them,” she says. “Last year I went with them to a volleyball tournament at the Special Olympics at ESPN (in Orlando). We had to work on the communication between the partners, practice before, and work with the players. I got to know them very well and quickly became friends with many of them.”
She plans to participate again this school year.
“Not only this year, but as long as I am around,” she says. “They keep me going. When I am around them, it is almost like leaving reality and being in a safe space of acceptance and love, and most importantly, not paying attention to what you are but who you are, a person of your own.”
She visits the special needs classrooms at Palmetto as often as she can.
Horwitz is president of Students Working Against Tobacco (SWAT). SWAT members go into classrooms every three months to educate fellow students about the danger of tobacco and e cigarettes. She was president last year as well.
Although COVID shut down the classroom visits her sophomore year, they went back to educating students last year. In addition, the club has interactive events to help engage students.
Horwitz is the Region Four representative for the Youth Advocacy Board for Tobacco Free Florida.
She’s also the Palmetto Jewish Student Union president.
“I have a lot of plans for this year,” she says. “Last year, we barely got to meet unfortunately, mostly because of adjustments to corona.”
Horwitz has been a member of the Palmetto tennis team but isn’t sure about joining this school year.
Outside of school she’s the Chabad team leader of Kendall, known as C-Teen leader. There are 650 chapters in 380 countries. She leads a group of 25 teens.
Her sophomore years she was a member of Diller Teen Fellows, a program for Jewish leaders all over the world. Group members talk about religion and partner with a city or town in Israel.
“We were supposed to visit them in Israel, but we couldn’t because of Corona,” she says.
Horwitz is planning to apply to Wake Forest, the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, the University of Florida, UCLA, the University of Miami, Florida State University, the University of Virginia, the University of California at San Diego and Berkeley. She is considering a computer science major.
Linda Rodriguez Bernfeld
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