Our branch was formed in 2012 with the aim of providing social contact for the many English speaking people living in the Tiberias/Jordan Valley area. Our members come from a wide variety of backgrounds.  Some new olim and many who have been in Israel all their adult lives,  We have people from orthodox Jewish communities, secular, non jewish and everything in between. Participants join us from towns and the many kibbutzim and yishuvim in the valley and further afield.  One common factor is that many of  our members feel that our branch is like a family.

We arrange monthly events such as quizzes, speaker meetings and outings.  Our lunch group meets every Wednesday in the shopping mall in Tiberias or during school holidays at the dining room or coffee shop at Degania Bet.  We also have a knitting group providing greatly appreciated blankets and clothing for maternity units in our area,

For anyone wishing to take up volunteering activities ESRA provided training for befrienders and the English Tutoring and Chat Away programme which helps young israelis improve their English language skills.  This is really important for access into higher education.

Through our fundraising activities we are pleased to be able to support ESRA projects nationally.  Locally we provide animal therapy sessions for a kindergarten caring for children with autism.

We are always pleased to welcome new friends so  if you are wondering about getting involved stop thinking about it and come and join us. 

Call or WhatsApp Peta 054 255 7286 or Carol 054 255 7229 and we will be happy to arrange to meet you.

Upcoming Events

Our branch was formed in 2012 with the aim of providing social contact for the many English speaking people living in the Tiberias and Jordan Valley. Our members come from a wide variety of backgrounds. Some new olim and some who have been in Israel all their adult lives.  We have people from orthodox backgrounds, secular and everything in between. We have members who live in towns and many from the kibbutzim or yishuvim in the valley and further afield. One common factor is that many of our members feel that our branch is like a family.

We arrange monthly events such as quizzes, speaker meetings, outings and pot-luck get-togethers. Our lunch group meets weekly either in the shopping mall in Tiberias or in the dining room at kibbutz Degania Bet. We also have a knitting group providing much appreciated blankets and clothing for maternity units in our area,

For anyone wishing to take up volunteering activities ESRA provides training for befrienders and the English Tutoring programme which helps young Israelis improve their English language skills.  This is really important for access into higher education.

Through our fund raising activities we are very pleased to be able to support ESRA projects in particular the Students Build a Community project and the ESRA Welfare Fund. Locally we aim to fund animal therapy sessions for a kindergarten caring for children with autism. Like so many other activities this has been cancelled because of Covid but it will start as soon as possible.

We are always pleased to welcome new friends so if you are wondering about getting involved stop thinking about it and come and join us.

Call Peta 054 255 7286 or Carol 054 255 7229 and we will arrange to meet you.

ESRA Rehovot Branch has been active for 30 years and has a long history of organizing lectures that are interesting, eclectic and often challenging to its audience.  Pre-COVID 19, when we were able to meet, we met not only for talks but also musical events and a successful wine-tasting evening.  We also arranged outings to regional points of interest, often with shared transportation for comfort and economy. These included museums in Rishon LeZion, Holon, Ashdod, Or Yehuda, Palmachin, and Rehovot. But not just art and archaeology --we also visited the Volcani Research Institute, Shafdan Wastewater Treatment plant, Nesher in Ramle, and a boutique winery. Post-COVID we have visited the Khan museum in Sha’ar HaGai , ANU and Steinhardt in Tel Aviv, and the Design Museum Holon. The outings are popular and well-attended – come join in other trips that we are planning.  

Although the unexpected and unprecedented COVID pandemic altered our traditional modus operandi, it provided us with the opportunity to expand our audience and guest speakers to all parts of the country (and world) and has enabled participation of members with limited mobility or constraints on attending evening events. The ESRA Rehovot Branch continues to exploit the ZOOM framework for our monthly lectures. Our aspiration is to present a diversified program, often inviting speakers from universities and research institutes near and far. This is also our way to continue raising funds for our local and national projects.

This year we have instituted a monthly get-together at the Café Dafna bakery. This congenial and casual setting gives members and friends a chance to meet and chat.

At present, ESRA Rehovot has one long-going project specifically within the city.  We have adopted two of the “Moadoniot”, after school clubs for children. Thanks to this project we have been able to enrich the quality of life as well as providing “extras” like holiday and birthday presents and outings for the children. In addition, we participate in ESRA national programs such as the English Tutoring Program (ETP) including  Chat Away.

ESRA Rehovot hopes to continue and expand our stimulating, educational and entertaining offerings. Want to help organize and decide where we go and what events we offer? Have ideas about additional projects in our community? We want to hear from ESRA Rehovot members and welcome friends and supporters. Come join us and share in the camaraderie. You would also be active in a national organization that does so much to enrich and improve the lives of those less fortunate. 

Sharon Levisohn | 052 3322144 | This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

ESRA Rehovot Branch Upcoming Events

ESRA Beer Sheva is one of the newest branches to form and has accomplished quite a lot in a short time.  We are a welcoming group to the many olim settling in the capital of the Negev.  The English-speaking immigrants are welcome to meet other newcomers and to join us in developing a viable volunteer base for the area.  We have gone from 0 to over 60 paid members in less than three years and hope for many more new members. 

We offer a wonderfully informative lecture, each month, and have had many very professional and dynamic lecturers in a variety of subjects.  For the past year we have been offering these lectures, as have the other branches, via ZOOM.

To date, we have volunteers participating in ESRA’s English Teaching Program (ETP) and of course we need more.  The object is to help local school children with their English conversation ranging from Primary to High School level. ESRA offers training to those volunteers and no teaching experience is necessary. We enable those children who have studied English, an opportunity to speak it.  We have found this program rewarding – to both the student and the volunteer.

Funds raised through our various activities and lectures, go to support ESRA’s projects in the area. 

Beer Sheva has had a very active program for underprivileged youngsters in a SkateBoard Club in conjunction with the City of Beer Sheva.  We provide and coordinate the equipment needed and the personnel to help them.  Unfortunately, this year has had no activity due to the City not wanting to endanger the health of the youngsters.

We have started and have a very active Knitting Club and have already donated much-needed knitted and crocheted products to the Soroka Hospital for Pediatrics and Newborn Care Departments.  When possible, we meet in person and when we can’t we ZOOM once a week.  We have gained and met many new members and friends.  We have also started a very successful and fun-filled Mah-Jongg Club. 

We have had an entertaining ‘Vintage Movie’ night once a month when possible (according to the Ministry of Health Guidelines). 

We have had a personal appeal to our members and received individual support for furnishing an apartment for a ‘girls at risk’ facility at Kibbutz Sa’ad.  We also have volunteers helping some of the girls out with their high school exams so that they can go on to further education.

Want to enrich your life, meet new friends, and have the most rewarding experiences, - join ESRA Beer Sheva!

 Chair: Ingrid Barzel
054 4-961995 | This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

ESRA Beer Sheva Upcoming Events

ESRA Five Towns branch is a dynamic, socially oriented group for English speakers in the areas known locally as Five Towns.  This covers the region between Hadera and Hof  Hacarmel including Zichron Ya’akov, Binyamina, Or Akiva, Caesarea and Pardes Hanna/Karkur – the number of towns seemed to grow! New members are always welcome and new olim enjoy free ESRA membership for a year. 

One of the main attractions is our Second Story Bookshop, staffed by an enthusiastic team of volunteers.  Situated on the second floor of the Shmura shopping centre in Zichron Ya’akov, it offers bargain-priced, quality second-hand English books in a welcoming environment, and literary events with excellent speakers including local authors.  Young children and their siblings, parents and grandparents are entertained at regular Story Time sessions while enjoying arts and crafts - often tying in with festivals.

Other activities include festival celebrations and parties, brunches at local cafes, a knitting club and speakers on a wide range of fascinating topics, some in-person and some on Zoom.  

The well-established ESRA English Tutoring Project (ETP) offers volunteers the opportunity to assist with English conversation with teachers and pupils in schools and via Zoom. 

Funds raised benefit several local projects.  These include the Riding and Animal Therapy Centre for children with special needs at Kibbutz Magal, and  vocational training scholarships through which local applicants can transform their lives.

Starting in Caesarea in 2003, the branch was the first to open in the north, and soon included membership from the surrounding area, at which point the name was changed to Five Towns.  The first event was a jazz concert and dinner in a private garden for 200 guests.  This was followed by a choir concert on the terrace of the Dan Caesarea.  The bookshop opened in 2008 in Or Akiva, on the premises of the Meir Panim charity and food bank.

Zichron Ya’akov alone has an estimated 15 - 20% of native English speakers, and the Five Towns area as a whole is an attractive region for new English speaking olim.  New members and volunteers are most welcome. 

For further information, please contact:

Hon. Secretary,  Jane Krivine This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.  |  Chairman, Lucille Cohen  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

ESRA Ra'anana Branch boasts a membership of over 600 English-speaking residents, originating from a variety of backgrounds and countries, such as the U.S., Canada, South Africa and the UK.

The Ra’anana Branch organizes tiyulim to a number of places of interest. In the past we have visited the IICC Museum, the Guide Dogs for the Blind Training Centre, the Ayalon Institute and the Weitzman Institute in Rehovot, just to name a few. We are planning an overnight tiyul in June in the Negev. In addition to tiyulim, we have a tasty, successful and well-attended monthly breakfast program, usually on Tuesdays, in a Ra'anana Café, together with interesting guest speakers. We have Zoom speakers and recently have had live speakers on various topics. Recent topics have been the Jews of Iran and the treasures of the Temple that are being held in the Vatican. Our Planning Committee Meetings are lively gathering sheld in the home of one of the Planning Committee members.

Ra’anana Branch offers many types of volunteering opportunities, such as an English Tutoring Program, in which volunteers help local schoolchildren with their English studies, a Befriender program where training is offered to those who wish to become befrienders to people who feel lost and alone. A portion of the funds that we bring in from our various activities goes to a Kfar Shmaryahu Club for mentally and physically challenged youth and adults as well as to assist underprivileged children in Netanya.

We are a warm and friendly group who look forward to welcoming new members to join us.

ESRA Ra’anana recently moved its English language secondhand bookshop to a very central location at 124 Ahuza in Ra’anana, being the Maccabi plaza. The shop has been completely updated and is a very pleasant and reasonably priced shopping experience. Come visit us there.   

Joint Chairs:-
Arne Rabuchin |  054-6240200
Michael Wolff   |  053-8925258                        

ESRA Ra'anana Branch Upcoming Events