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Miami Palmetto High School rising senior Hayley Glassman spent six weeks this summer attending the Alexander Muss High School in Israel.
“We learned about Israel’s history and the hardships they’ve faced throughout history,” she says. “It was amazing.”
Her favorite experience was the trip to Masada, the ancient fortification on the rocky plateau in the Southern District of Israel, which overlooks the Dead Sea.
“We woke up at 3:30 a.m. and climbed as the sun was rising,” she says.
Going to the Western Wall was another meaningful trip.
“There was a tremendous amount of people there and people were singing and praying together.”
Being in a foreign country in the midst of a pandemic can be scary, but Glassman says Israel is on top of vaccines.
The experience left her feeling more connected to the people of Israel and her Judaism.
At home, Glassman participates in Friendship Circle.
“After a year of everyone being in quarantine, everyone is glad to get back into it,” she says.
She goes two Sundays a month and when she’s there she’s paired up with the same friend.
“It’s very rewarding because you can see how happy they are to see you and make a connection,” she says. “When they were able to get everyone back in person it was more impactful.”
In previous summers, Glassman was a counselor in training at the Temple Beth Am Summer Camp. She worked with 10-12 Pre-K children.
Last summer she was not able to volunteer because of the pandemic.
“It gave me a lot of responsibility. I oversaw the activities for a group of children,” she says. “It gave me a greater appreciation for growing up. They are so naive. The younger children have so much excitement over the smallest things. It’s nice to watch.”
Last year she started school in person but ended up going to online learning. She also volunteered online with Achieve Miami.
“They put you in a break-out room with a Little Buddy and you can read with them for an hour,” she says. “When they would struggle, or come to a word they didn’t know, you’d help them.”
She loved it when the next time they came across that word, they’d get it right.
“It showed me I made a difference,” she says. “They were paying attention and took my guidance.”
At Beth Am, she is a member of the Teen Social Justice Fellowship.
“We are educating ourselves on social, economic and environmental issues,” she says.
“Every zoom I was intrigued and fascinated about what we were learning about. I have a greater appreciation for global issues.”
The teens were supposed to travel to Guatemala to build houses, but the trip was cancelled because of COVID-19 restrictions.
Last year, when Glassman did physically go to Palmetto, she went to work on the yearbook.
She joined the yearbook staff her freshman year when her sister was the Editor-in-Chief.
“She was my Editor-in-Chief and my role model,” Glassman says. “Now I get to be Editor-in- Chief. After two years of uncertain times, I want to make an outstanding memory book.
We are living through history. I want this to be something they can show their kids.”
Glassman is Advertising Chair for the Student Council. She’s Vice President of Community Service for Interact and a member of the Spanish National Honor Society and the National Honor Society.
She’s considering marketing, business or psychology as college majors. Her potential colleges include the University of Florida and somewhere out of state.
Linda Rodriguez Bernfeld
