Devorah Miller-Kwestel, 23, made aliyah from Passaic in 2017 when she was only 19 years old. She first lived in Gush Etzion, where she did Sherut Leumi (national service) for a year. She studied English literature at Bar Ilan University and now lives with her husband Adam in Givat Shmuel.

Aviva: Where did your family daven in Passaic and what schools did you go to?

Devorah: My family went to Adas Israel, and I went to YBH and then Bruriah for high school.

Aviva: Was there Zionism education in your education?

Devorah: It was always in the back of my head that making aliyah was the ideal. At YBH, we went to the Israeli Day Parade every year, and that definitely had an impact. At Bruriah, Zionism was a focus and there even was a career night where they brought in somebody from Nefesh B’Nefesh to speak about careers in Israel.

Aviva: Can you tell me about a trip you took to Israel that affected your decision to move to Israel?

Devorah: I was on NCSY GIVE for the summer of 2014 during Tzuk Eitan where the three boys were kidnapped and killed and then the ground war and the rockets happened. Our program wasn’t under rocket attack because we were in the north the entire time, but it did give us some perspective about what it’s like to live in Israel.

Aviva: Did you go to camp and come to Israel for the year after high school?

Devorah: I went to Camp Stone for a summer, which had a tremendous impact on my Zionist education. I was only there for one summer, but I fell in love with the Zionist messaging. Then I went to MMY for seminary, which added to my Zionist experience.

Aviva: You made aliyah as a teenager. How did your family react to that?

Devorah: They were sad because it was hard for them that I was leaving, but they were very supportive.

Aviva: How did you come to the decision to make aliyah?

Devorah: I love the opportunities that exist for me here. When seminary was over, I didn’t want to go back to the US. I was enrolled in Queens College, but I felt that if I was not going to make aliyah then, I never would. I just wanted to do it and see how it went. I did a lot of thorough research into Sherut Leumi and universities, and I understood that I could do it. It also helped that I knew a lot of people making aliyah at the same time. I just went for it, and I have never looked back.

Aviva: What did you do in Sherut Leumi?

Devorah: I worked as an assistant in a school that integrates special needs children into mainstream classrooms.

Aviva: What are you doing now?

Devorah: I just got married, and I work at a PR agency as a content writer.

Aviva: What do you miss about living in New Jersey?

Devorah: I miss having access to my family when I need them. I miss the convenience of living in the same country as them.

Aviva: Do you have a message for anyone who’s contemplating aliyah?

Devorah: I have a few: Don’t be naive. Do a lot of research and talk to a lot of people because making aliyah is not simple. It’s not going to be easy, but it gets better. If you work hard, you will find your place in Israeli society, whether with Israelis or with Americans in Israel. No one should tell you you’re less of an oleh or olah if you live in an English-speaking community.

And one more—making aliyah does not mean changing your identity. It just means finding your identity in a new place.

By Aviva Zacks