American Loren Brovarnik (née Goldstone) met the Israeli Alexei Brovarnik when she served as a group leader for a Birthright Israel trip for which Alexei was the medic, as the Birthright Israel Foundation described on its website. Birthright Israel, as explained on its website’s frequently asked questions page, is a group trip that young Jewish people can choose to take to Israel almost entirely free of cost.
In an interview in the same article with the Birthright Israel Foundation, Loren shared that not only did she not plan on meeting her future husband in Israel, but she also wasn’t planning on becoming a staff member or returning to Israel after she participated in her own Birthright Israel trip. An article in The Times of Israel also covered the Brovarniks’ relationship and ties to Israel. Said Loren of how Birthright Israel changed her outlook and religious practices, “I did not grow up very religious; my parents did. I never thought I would go back to Israel. Now I go back every year. Now I’m so pro-Israel and pro-Judaism. Not that I wasn’t before, but Alex and I are much more traditional. We do Shabbat, we say the prayers, we light candles … I’m so pro-Birthright — obviously, it affected my life in the best way possible.”
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