Rena Shimborsky grew up in Brooklyn, New York and raised her family there as well as in Jackson, New Jersey. She now lives in Ramat Beit Shemesh with her husband and three sons. I had the pleasure of meeting Rena and am excited to share her remarkable aliyah journey with you.
Tell us a bit about yourself, your family, and your background.
I grew up in Brooklyn, New York. My husband is also from Brooklyn, and after we got married,
we lived there for nine years. Then we moved to Jackson, New Jersey for seven years, and about two and a half years ago, we moved to Israel. I have three boys – my oldest is 17, the next is 12, and the youngest is 7. When we moved they were 15, 10, and 5.
What inspired you to move to Eretz Yisrael? Did you always want to live here or was it more spontaneous?
It was mostly spontaneous. During corona, our yearning for Eretz Yisrael was awakened when we heard about so many people making aliyah. At that time, we thought about it, but it wasn’t practical for us, so we put the idea away completely.
A few years after that, my husband came home and told me that he felt Hashem was telling him we should go to Eretz Yisrael. This was pretty out of character for him. Even though I was excited by the idea, I was more cautious because of my health (I had been sick for many years but at that time it was extra challenging). I wanted to be sure this was truly coming from Hashem and not just something I wanted emotionally.
I told my husband “If Hashem tells me lech lecha, then I’ll go.“
Soon after, I was listening to a shiur, and right in the middle of it, the Rav I always listen to suddenly said the words “lech lecha.” It seemed completely out of place. I replayed it again and again, trying to understand why he said it. Still, I didn’t take it as a definitive sign because it was a huge decision to move to Eretz Yisrael and I wanted to be sure that this is really what Hashem was telling me. We also asked our oldest son what he thought about the move, since he was
already 15 and this move would affect him too. He was very positive about the idea. At one point, when we started wavering, he was the one who encouraged us to revisit it.
Hashem kept sending us more messages. I randomly saw a podcast with Jamie Geller, where she spoke about her aliyah journey. So I started listening and one thing she said was that once you are seriously considering aliyah, the next step is to ask daas Torah. So I just followed the clues that Hashem laid out for me and made an appointment with a Rav. Right before the appointment, I received a message on my phone that said “Whatever the tzaddik emes says, it’s as if Hashem is talking to you.” And then before my appointment, a friend also randomly mentioned to me that this Rav was a true tzaddik – and I don’t even know if she knew we were going to see him that day.
During our meeting, we spoke out our thoughts with the Rav. He didn’t tell us what to do, but at one point in the conversation, he said the words “lech lecha.” For me, that was a clear sign that Hashem was telling us to go.
Once we saw all these signs, it was clear to me that this is what Hashem wanted us to do, but it still took me a long time to process that we were actually going to move. I told my husband not to tell anyone yet until I had time to process it for myself.
From the time my husband first mentioned it in August until we were living here in June, the entire process took less than a year.
What was your community’s reaction when you told them you were moving?
No one expected it. It was a big shock to everyone. We weren’t leaving because we weren’t happy; we had an amazing community in Jackson – incredible neighbors, incredible friends, my kids were in an amazing yeshiva, we had an amazing shul and Rav, and my husband was very involved in the shul.
Before we left, we had parties to say goodbye to our community, and many people said how inspired they were and how much they hoped to come one day too.
Honestly, I was also surprised by our decision, so it makes sense that everyone else was also. Even if I dreamt about it a little by corona time, I didn’t think of it as a reality. And in general, we’re not people with a lot of money or privilege that makes big moves easy. We were leaning on Hashem one hundred percent.
You moved with kids at very different ages – what was that transition like for them?
Baruch Hashem, it was very smooth overall. My oldest son struggled with school at first, but overall we were all so happy to be here. We feel at home here. We love touring, going to the Kosel, and just living regular life here. In general, my kids are happy and easygoing, Baruch Hashem; they just love everything about living here.
I personally feel so at home here. In the years before we moved, even though I was very happy in my community, I felt an emptiness inside that I couldn’t explain. Once we arrived here, I understood – this is what I had been missing. Living in Eretz Yisrael completely filled that emptiness for me.
Finding a yeshiva for our oldest son was one major obstacle we faced. We said we wouldn’t move unless we could find the right place for him. At the exact time we were researching schools, the Rosh Yeshiva of the school we were considering happened to be in America and was going to be in Lakewood for a wedding, so he came to our home and we were able to meet him. Everything he described sounded like a perfect fit. The type of families and the type of boys he was looking for; it all clicked. He also mentioned that he was thinking of opening an English speaking class because many families planning aliyah wanted to join his yeshiva. Even though we weren’t sure that would happen, we were very hopeful and applied. Once he accepted us, we completely committed to moving to Eretz Yisrael.
However, when my son started in the yeshiva, most of the class was Hebrew speaking, and the yeshiva was in the middle of transitioning and it wasn’t yet the yeshiva that the Rosh Yeshiva had described to us. In general, my son handled it very well even though I’m sure it was very hard for him, but after a few months he felt he couldn’t continue, mainly because of the Hebrew. He tried out another yeshiva through the next year. The Rosh Yeshiva took my son under his wing and was so helpful. He arranged for another new oleh to learn with him, and for him to have an English speaking Rebbe. By the start of the next year, a new Yeshiva called Yesodi Yisroel opened for new olim, providing the classes in English, and he is incredibly happy there now.
For my younger boys, it also took them time to get used to the language.
How was the transition for you and for your husband?
The transition was very smooth for me and my husband. My husband speaks Hebrew, which Baruch Hashem has been an incredible help. I was always wondering why he spoke Hebrew and then once we moved, I understood – Hashem truly gives us all the tools we need.
It took my husband about four months to find a job. He’s an RN and does office work; his job in America didn’t want him to work remotely so he had to find a new job here. We came knowing that would be the case, and the timing worked out perfectly.
For the first two months, we treated our time here like a vacation. We had never really taken vacations before, and we felt that if we were ever going to vacation anywhere, it would be to Eretz Yisrael. So for the first two months, we didn’t think about work at all, we just enjoyed ourselves. After that, it took another two and a half months until my husband found a job. During this time, he had time to get everything together – paperwork and lots of technical aspects of
moving – so we were able to get more settled and it was actually very helpful that he hadn’t started working yet.
Socially, it has been great for me. I’m more introverted, but Hashem placed me next to neighbors with whom I connected easily. Our whole building is pretty connected and we have the space to host so Baruch Hashem we’re able to host the neighbors here for melaveh malkas, and other women for different classes, so I’ve met a lot of people through that as well.
Where do you live? How’s the community there?
I live in Ramat Beit Shemesh Gimmel, and I love it. We’ve had an incredible experience with our neighbors and community. Our building is about half American, half Israeli, and we all get along. On Friday nights after candle lighting, I have the privilege of hosting the women from the building – Israelis and Americans together. Conversations usually flow between Hebrew and English depending on who is there.
How is your life different here? How did your life change once you moved?
My excitement about coming to Israel was the fact that we could get closer to Hashem here. Living in Ramat Beit Shemesh, I am surrounded by amazing people. Every single person is incredible and holy with so much bitachon. They are all living meaningful lives focused on all the right things. Everyone is growing, everyone came here for the same reasons, so there are many, many classes, and the daily conversations revolve around growth and connection to Hashem.
Do you have any advice for people who are still living in America?
I believe that everyone belongs here and that everyone will be here. No one should feel pressured, but there should be an awareness that living in Eretz Yisrael is something that everyone should work towards.
Timing is important. If we had come during corona when we first felt that yearning to be here, I don’t think it would have been the right time. Hashem brought us here at the exact right moment. If someone is only hearing about the importance of the mitzvah to live in Eretz Yisrael now, they shouldn’t feel pressure – this is a decision that should be made with bitachon. Daven to Hashem to help you fulfill the mitzvah of yishuv Eretz Yisrael, and be patient with His timing.
