Tivnu Blog

It's been four months now, and I can't believe how my perspective on life has changed for the better. Before moving to Portland for Tivnu, I lived in a suburb in Oak Park, IL....

Greetings from California! Over winter break, I’ve had some time to reflect on four months in Portland with Tivnu. I’m Sophie, the oldest Tivnunik in the program this year....

It’s no secret that Portland is a rainy place. Around Thanksgiving, the days become shorter, colder, and more dreary and gray. The sidewalks are kaleidoscopic from shedding trees....

Hi! I'm Yoni and I'm from D.C. I graduated high school last year and decided I wanted to do Tivnu because it's a Jewish program that offers a chance to work with Habitat for Humanity....

The Tivnu Gap Year begins with establishing our home in Portland, Oregon’s terrific Irvington neighborhood. We begin our hands-on education by learning about affordable housing and houselessness in Portland and beyond....

Last week I had the pleasure of visiting the ReBuilding Center in Northeast Portland. After weaving my way through isles of refurbished doors and windows, baskets of miscellaneous appliances, and piles of mismatched house furnishings, I found the Tivnu construction crew....

I hope everyone is having a sweet start to their new year. On Erev Rosh Hashanah we hosted a dinner with 19 people. It was very pleasant, although we ran out of grape juice....

Our third cohort of Tivnu Gap Year participants comes from California, Illinois, Maryland, New York, and Oregon. They are excited to join the Tivnu: Building Justice Gap Year Program for lots of different reasons....

My name is Ayla, and I am excited to be writing the first blog post of the year. I am one of the participants of the third year of Tivnu (aka Threevnu). ...

As you might know, this year's Tivnu gap year came to an end on Tuesday the 24th, so it’s time for the participants to go home. Although we are all sad that Tivnu is ending for us, it is time to go on with life....