Elana Weiner-Kaplow
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Elana's love for Israel compelled the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign acting major to make
aliyah
midway through her degree. While living in Israel, she served in the IDF Education Corps as a sergeant in a unit that supported soldiers with learning disabilities as they worked toward earning their GEDs.
When Elana returned to Chicago, she launched and led the iCenter's Chicago
Shinshinim
(Year of Service) program, which brings cohorts of Israeli 18-year-olds to serve as volunteer educators throughout the Chicago Jewish community.
Beyond connecting five cohorts of Israeli teens to local synagogues, day schools, camps, and other standard Jewish institutions, Elana broadened the scope of the program, creating engagement opportunities with Jewish seniors, people with special needs, and local public high schools, where the Israelis could meet with Jewish and non-Jewish students.
After October 7, her calm, compassionate leadership served as a source of strength for the Israeli visitors, creating daily check-ins, shared rituals, and space for honest conversation to help them process and heal. She also stayed in close contact with each Israeli teen's family in Israel, and helped Chicago host families navigate how to care for their house guests with empathy.
AGE:
33
PRIMARY GIG:
I’m the former director of the Chicago Shinshinim program, which brings cohorts of Israeli 18-year-olds to serve as volunteer educators throughout the Chicago Jewish community.
ON THE SIDE:
I love to craft, up-cycle thrifted furniture, and experiment in my makeshift art studio—where power tools, glitter, and spray paint reign supreme.
SOMETHING MOST PEOPLE DON’T KNOW ABOUT ME:
I used to volunteer as a story collector for an arts nonprofit called Erasing the Distance, which uses documentary theater to reduce the stigma around mental health. I later devised a play with a team of artists, that wove together the real stories of four people affected by gun violence—a project that changed how I understand both healing and the power of listening.
YOUR BEST PIECE OF ADVICE:
Always learn the names of the folks that work behind the scenes. Their work is essential, their knowledge vast, and their access unparalleled.
