Page 70 - Kol Bogrei Habonim - Winter 20
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become Seminar Manager. I took over from visit and study an Urban Commune in San
Jimmy Becker, from Kibbutz Gadot, a Francisco, called Kerista. They had dreams
dynamic academic who developed a kibbutz of becoming the American Kibbutz
board game, rather like Monopoly. He Movement, but sadly broke up after some 15
trained me, before returning to work in his years of very successful economic
kibbutz. He also introduced me to my very communality, selling Macintosh Computers.
first Chinese meal in town. They broke up for more or less the same
reasons the kibbutz did, opting for
privatisation instead of the commune. I still
correspond with some of the ex-members.
I worked in Ef’al from 1984 until 1990 and
transferred over to the Habonim Office for a
final year, then returned home to resume
work in the kibbutz. In 1992, I took over the
children's farm and worked there for two
years.
Sadly, my wife, Celia died in 1994. My three
Centre for Kibbutz Studies in Efal sons were married and had opted to live
outside the kibbutz. One is a therapist and is
The Study Centre was headed by David living in Oregon. The second is a doctor and
Sacks of Kibbutz Givat Brenner and my work the third a real-estate agent, working for the
partner was Benny Kaye from Ein Harod Golan Lands Commission. I have nine
Ichud. We gave seminars to all the groups grandchildren. The eldest is a pilot in the IDF.
turning up in Israel, who wanted to learn In 1994, the kibbutz voted to privatise. This
about the Kibbutz Movement – academics, was a very stormy time, and the community
religious Christians, youth movement was split down the middle. The pro-
groups, summer camps and volunteers. In its privatisation faction had a majority, and the
heyday, the number of volunteers was first steps were taken to end communality.
estimated in the thousands, and reached However, an odd mixture of kibbutz sharing
nearly 1/4 of a million by the time it faded, in and privatisation came out of all the
1994. Consequently, there was always a decisions. The budgets remained universal,
volunteer seminar twice a month. We and people added salaries to that, so a
averaged 42 three-day seminars a year.
graduated pay scale was introduced.
Prof. Yaakov Oved, head of the Communes Today members pay for food in the dining
Desk, asked me to handle the English hall and the shop. Electricity, water and gas
correspondence coming in from the World are all paid for, as are laundry and haircuts!
Commune Movement, and thus I also got to Virtually everybody owns a car now, and
sit on the Communes Desk Committee in parking has become a problem. Cars are
Ef’al. During that time, I received funds to
parked all over the kibbutz and around the
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