Thursday, March 28, 2024 -
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Making aliyah with the Wasoskys

Wasosky family makes aliyahShana and Rabbi Nachum Wasosky grew up in Pittsburgh. For Shana, Colorado was always a second home because she came here with her parents, Dr. Mark and Ida May, and her six siblings, twice yearly, spending winters skiing in Vail Valley and summers hiking in the Rockies.

After college, Nachum and Shana married and spent their first two years of marriage in Jerusalem.

When Denver’’s Aish-Ahavas Yisrael was looking for a warm and dynamic,young rabbinic couple to join its staff in 2002, the Wasoskys seemed the perfect fit.

Plus, Shana’’s parents, the May’s, were then living in Colorado full time.

Upon leaving Israel for Denver in 2002, Shana’’s sister, a resident of Ra’anana, Israel, was crying at the airport at the thought of losing her only sibling living in Israel to a long distance relationship.

“”Don’’t worry, we’’ll be back in a few years — we’re on a five-year plan,”” reassured Shana. Ummhm, right, thought Shana’’s sister. “That’’s what they all say. You know how it goes —— the five-year plan, turned 10-year plan, turned retirement plan, and then turned to the Mashiach plan

Then six years and four kids later, this past January, Shana made a phone call to her sister, “”eat your words —— we are coming back.””

Shana’’s parents had returned from a trip to Israel one year ago —— it was a trip that turned out to be the clincher in their lifelong dream and desire to make aliyah.

““We decided to make aliyah, and somehow things just fell into place,”” says Ida May.

“”We even managed to purchase an apartment before the trip was over without having the bank inspect our finances in advance.””

Once Shana’’s parents were officially moving, Shana and Rabbi Wasosky seriously considering returning home to Israel.

Meanwhile, in the intervening years, Nachum’’s mother, Evie Wasosky had relocated to Denver to be near her children and grandchildren.

Once Nachum and Shana made the decision to move, Evie was spurred into seriously thinking of making aliyah as well.

““It was not an easy decision for me. I never expected to move to Israel. I am leaving my aging mother behind, as well as my other grandchildren, who live in Ohio.”

“Starting over with a job is also a scary step.

“”But Shana called me up one day and said she loves me, and that she really wants me to come.

““What daughter-in-law in the world does such a thing?

““I just couldn’t stay behind, and since I was traveling anyway to see my other grandchildren, I decided I will visit the US twice a year for protracted bonding visits with my other children and grandchildren.”

““We all left Denver on Aug. 26 traveling around the country saying goodbye to our family members remaining in the US.”

“”These past two weeks we have been to Florida, Iowa, Cleveland and New Jersey,”” says Shana.

“Leaving Denver was really hard,” she says. “”Denver is a special town. Denver is just rare. We didn’’t just make friends in Denver, we made family.”

““People have been so good to us and it was hard to leave after six years at Aish.

“When we arrived we did not know anyone in the community.

“”We arrived bruised and banged up from a car accident. Neil and Vicki Olesky took us in for our first week and Neil put our house together for us.

“”When we moved into the Oleskys’ for our final week in Denver, it felt like our years in Denver came full circle.””

The Wasoskys turned out to be the biggest group on this week’s Nefesh B’’Nefesh flight making aliyah.

Outfitted in light blue aliyah T-shirts, each sporting an official number on the back, they were a team of 10, Team Wasosky! For, once his parents were making the big move, Shana’’s only other sibling in Denver, Harry May, decided to join the crew.

““I woke up one day and realized I just couldn’’t part from my adorable nieces and nephew —— they are everything to me.”

And let’’s not forget their golden retriever, who made aliyah as part of Team Wasosky as well!

So here they all were. Three generations of a family making aliyah together, led by the patriarch and matriarch of this large and close knit family, Dr. Mark and Ida May.

“”My dream is for all of my children to follow soon,”” smiles Dr. May, his grin brightening a white trimmed beard and hair that is crowned with a colorful, arty and free spirit kippah.

“”I am praying Ida and I will be living in Israel surrounded by our seven children and their respective families in the next few years.””

Then he turns more serious.

“”You know, everyone faces death, in every family, and you know you won’’t be together forever. But to leave your family voluntarily” . . .” and his voice breaks, getting choked up. Ida, sitting across the aisle on the plane, reaches and gently pats him as she picks up where the doctor left off, explaining. His older sister’’s husband cannot travel and when she hugged Dr. May she expressed her worry: “”I’’m scared I’’ll never see you again.””

May, as a volunteering ENT, founded a teaching clinic in 1984 at Rambam Hospital in Haifa. He mentored young doctors, broadening their medical horizons.

He went on to develop medical mentoring in many of the well known hospitals across Israel, such as Shaare Zedek in Jerusalem, Ichilov in Tel Aviv and Saroka in Beersheba.

“”I always knew we were coming back, but Nefesh B’’Nefesh set the date. They helped make it happen.”

“What is the common denominator of everyone on this flight?”

““A shared sense of Jewish history,”” comes the fast reply. “”We are not running away from anything. We are all here to embrace and contribute to Jewish life in Israel.

““I have been unexpectedly tearing up on this flight, feeling so grateful to G-d, experiencing this lifelong dream of moving to Israel permanently, unfolding right now on this Nefesh B’’Nefesh flight. We are all coming home.””



Tehilla Goldberg

IJN columnist | View from Central Park


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