The Jewish Spirit of Ukraine, in Three Vignettes
Even as the conflict in Ukraine continues, Chanel Shirazi discovered a dynamic, resilient Jewish community there with JDC Entwine.
By Chanel Shirazi - JDC Entwine ReJoint Ukraine Participant | December 18, 2024
For Chanel Shirazi, the “Jewish spirit” is the connective tissue that ties all Jews together across space and time. When she traveled to Ukraine with JDC Entwine on its ReJoint Ukraine trip — a unique opportunity for Entwine alumni to experience JDC’s humanitarian efforts firsthand — Shirazi saw that the country’s Jewish spirit is more alive and vibrant than she ever could have imagined. In this reflection, Shirazi illustrates this powerful experience with three vignettes.

My family fled Ukraine 100 years ago. A century later, I chose to go back.
In September 2024, I traveled to Ukraine with JDC Entwine. When I shared that I was traveling to Ukraine, I was met, understandably, with confusion and concern. Even I couldn’t quite articulate my reasoning.
Only when I returned did I understand what had propelled me to travel across the world to Ukraine. And it isn’t really a “reason” at all — it’s a feeling, that inexplicable connection to Jews around the world who we don’t know and perhaps will never meet.
It’s the phenomenon of the Jewish spirit.
For centuries, Jews have lived in eastern Poland and western Ukraine, then known as the region of Galicia. Wherever you look, the history of Jewish society, intellectualism, and culture emerges from the cracks. While extraordinary, it was heart-wrenching to witness the desecration and destruction of what was once the largest populated area of Ashkenazi Jews in Europe.
What was more breathtaking than learning of the unbelievable past was witnessing the endurance, strength, and resilience of the Jewish spirit in Ukraine today.
JDC Entwine speaks a lot about the power of storytelling. I believe that this is the best way to illustrate the strength and Jewish spirit of the Ukrainian Jewish spirit.

Here are three brief stories from my trip that I think reveal that spirit:
No. 1
At the JDC-supported Hesed Arieh social service center in Lviv, I met with elderly Ukrainian Jews, including some who survived World War II and/or were internally displaced from their homes during the conflict. The Hesed offers homecare and delivers basic material assistance, as well as social, mental and psychological support to seniors who are homebound, however we were unable to visit client homes on our trip because their buildings lack accessible bomb shelters.
While at Hesed Arieh, I met one elderly woman who barely spoke English. She said that we didn’t need to speak the same language, that she knew I could understand her regardless, and strangely, I did. She was orphaned as a child during World War II and, like many Ukrainian Jews, has recently had to relocate for the second time to Lviv because of the conflict. When I asked where it is that she calls home, she said with smiling eyes, “I have three homes: Kyiv, Lviv, and Israel.” Even amidst the most unimaginable horrors, her and her Jewishness were inseparable. It was in that moment that Jewish resilience almost brought me to tears.
No. 2
At Hillel Lviv, a chapter of Hillel International — the organization where I began my Jewish professional life in college and which I owe so much to — we met with the incredible staff and student leaders, many whom arrived in Lviv after being displaced and/or have only recently learned of their Jewish heritage. JDC was a co-founder and supporter of Hillel in the FSU — Hillel is even located in the Hesed Arieh building. Unlike in the United States, Hillel Lviv does not operate on college campuses but, just as it does here, it serves as a hub for Jewish gathering, learning, and fun for young Jews.
When the conflict began, the Hillel staff asked the students “What do you need at this moment? Food? Shelter? Anything?” They responded, “We need Shabbat.” And so, even as the blare of sirens fills the air, young Jews continue to celebrate Shabbat — the day that unites the Jewish people.
No. 3
At a 19th-century synagogue in Lviv, destroyed during World War II and then turned into a gym under communism, we joined the JDC-supported Lviv Volunteer Center to remodel the synagogue. While there, we helped replaster the walls and organize the library. Later in the week, we joined the Jewish community inside for Shabbat services and across from me, a beautiful little girl with bright blue eyes sat on her mother’s lap. She reminded me of my niece. Her mother told me that the little girl wanted to know my name.
Even as the blare of sirens fill the air, young Jews continue to celebrate Shabbat — the day that unites the Jewish people.
The next evening during Havdalah, the conclusion of the Jewish Sabbath, the community came together in a circle outside the synagogue. We began singing, and I saw the little girl run in the middle to dance as little children do. In a region filled with so much death and devastation, this little one gave me hope that a new garden will grow — that, contrary to what some believe, Jewish life is not over nor is it just beginning again.
The Jewish spirit is a vessel and living story of the Jewish people — one of longing, pain, joy, resilience, and hope. It’s the voice that impelled me to show up for my Ukrainian Jewish brothers and sisters in crisis and, perhaps, what encouraged my family 100 years ago to begin a new story in a new land.
My trip to Ukraine with JDC Entwine taught me that when we show up for each other, when we learn, pray, grieve, and hope together, when our spirits connect, it’s nothing short of a miracle.
Chanel is a seasoned Jewish professional with extensive leadership experience with organizations including Hillel International, American Jewish Committee (AJC), and JDC. She has had the extraordinary honor to partake and learn about JDC’s work around the world in Rwanda, India, Poland and Ukraine and served as a fellow in JDC Entwine’s Commuity Reps Program. A Phi Beta Kappa and summa cum laude graduate from George Mason University, Chanel holds a B.A in conflict analysis and resolution with a specialty in community engagement. Currently, Chanel serves as the Development Manager for the Union for Reform Judaism (URJ) Eisner and Crane Lake Camps and is a Shapiro Family Fellow with UJA-Federation NY. You can find Chanel on the Upper East Side exploring coffee shops and bookstores.
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