Volume 8, Issue 4 / Adar II 5765 / April 2005
The Beat Goes On
When Benyamin Bresky was working on radio shows in his native Cleveland, he was the technician for the Mormon Tabernacle Choir program as well as a Church program that followed. "I came from that to play here for Jewish people," says the 28-year-old new immigrant.
While attending the local public schools in Cleveland, Benyamin was active in United Synagogue Youth, the youth movement of Conservative Judaism. After graduating from Cleveland State University, in 1999, with a major in communications, he worked at a variety of part-time jobs at local radio stations.
"At one of the stations," he recalls, "I once filled in on Christmas and I played all this Christian music. But I felt pretty dumb so I began playing Jewish music," he deadpans. "But I felt pretty dumb doing that too – who am I to be playing Jewish music on Christmas? No matter which way I went I could never fit in."
This feeling, coupled with a bit of wanderlust - "In some ways I felt like I needed to get away from the place where I was born and brought up in order to grow"- prompted a visit to the local Jewish Agency aliyah emissary, who told him about various programs in Israel for young adults. The Jewish Agency's Internship Program, which provides young adults from throughout the world with the opportunity obtain professional experience in Israel by serving as volunteer trainees in their fields, seemed the perfect framework for him. After receiving Benyamin's resume from the emissary, the Internship Program matched him with Israel National Radio.com, an independently owned and operated internet station that broadcasts in Hebrew, English, French, and Russian.
He arrived in Israel as a tourist in April 2004. He was housed in the Jewish Agency's Beit Canada in Jerusalem, one of 35 absorption centers throughout Israel that helps ease the transition for newcomers during their first months in Israel. This includes an intensive Hebrew language ulpan as well as a variety of programs to help them learn about Israel. "It's a nice place," says Benyamin, who recently became an oleh.. "I've met people from all over the world. There's always someone to talk to." He is currently rooming with Sasha, an immigrant from Russia: "He doesn't speak and English and I don't speak any Russian, so we have to converse in Hebrew."
Benyamin's 6-month internship consisted of doing various odd jobs and various administrative tasks. When his internship ended he was offered a permanent job at the station, and when there was an hour to fill, he was given his own show. "The Beat with Ben Bresky," a weekly hour-long music show in English, airs ever Sunday at 6 pm. "Each week I try to do something different," he says, "like Carlebach, or Ladino, or trance music. One week he hosted songstress Shuli Natan of Jerusalem of Gold fame. "The radio station treats me like family," he noted, adding, "At last I fit in."
Written by: Shifra Paikin
Photos by: Shimmi NachtailerTo download this file as a word document, click here.
To download enlarged photos, click here.
