KIBUTZIM
The kibbutzim with which we have worked in the past few years are the following:
Ein-Gev is located on the eastern shores of the Sea of Galilee in one of the most beautiful locations in the area. The kibbutz was established in 1937 by a group of young Jewish pioneers who dreamt of new beginnings and a better society.
The need for additional sources of income other than agriculture, coupled with the enchanting scenery and the historic importance of the area, led to the establishment of a great tourism complex. The beautiful scenery, professional service and years of experience, coupled with a combination of tourist attractions and facilities, made the Ein-Gev Tourist Dept. one of the most respected place on the Israeli tourist map.
Maoz Haim is a kibbutz in the norther Jordan Vally. Established in 1937 by immigrants from Poland and Germany, it is located off the Jordan River in the Beit She’an valley and falls under the jurisdiction of Valley of Springs Regional Council. It is named after Haim Shturman, a member of the Hagana, who was killed there in 1938.
There are currently hundreds inhabitants living in the kibbutz. Aside from agriculture, the kibbutz also has a plastics factory, “Poliraz”
Yagur
Yagur is a kibbutz located in northern Israel in the Haifa area. Located on the slopes of Mount Carmel about 9 km southeast of Haifa, it is one of the two largest kibbutzim in the country, with a population of 1,124 in 2008. It falls under the jurisdiction of Zevulun Regional Council. Yagur was founded in 1922 by a settlement group called Ahva. Its name was taken from an Arab village called “Yajur” nearby. There is a site with a similar name (Jagur) mentioned in the Book of Joshua 15:21, though it was located in territory belonging to the Tribe of Judah, far to the south.
At first, the members worked drying up the swamps surrounding the Kishon River and preparing the land for permanent settlement. They then established the various agricultural divisions, and the kibbutz began to grow. The economy is now based on diversified agriculture and industry. During the Mandate era, Yagur was an important center for the Haganah. During Operation Agatha on 29 June 1946, the British army conducted a major raid on the kibbutz and located a major arms depot hidden there after receiving a tip from informants. The weapons were confiscated, and many members of the kibbutz were arrested.
Ramat Hashofet
Ramat HaShofet is a kibbutz in northern Israel. Located in the Menashe Heights, it falls under the jurisdiction of Megiddo Regional Council. In 2006 it had a population of 578.
The kibbutz was established on 2 November 1941 by two gar’ins, Mitzpe HaSharon and Shihrur which included immigrants from Bulgaria, Hungary, Lithuania and Poland. “Ramat HaShofet” translates literally as “The Judge Heights”, with this judge being United States federal judge Julian William Mack (1866-1943), U.S. Zionist leader serving as president of the Palestine Endowment Funds, honorary president of the World Jewish Congress, president of the American Jewish Congress, Zionist Organization of America, and various other organizations. He attended the Versailles Conference as an advocate for a Zionist state in Palestine.
Tzeelim
Tze’elim is a kibbutz in the Negev desert in southern Israel. It falls under the jurisdiction of Eshkol Regional Council and has a population of 418 in 2006. The kibbutz was founded in January 1947 by gar’in from youth movements in Eastern Europe and North Africa, and was named for the abundant acacia trees in the area, which were mistakenly identified as the biblical Tze’elim trees. During the 1948 Arab-Israeli War the kibbutz was used as a military base.
Today the kibbutz markets itself as a tourist destination, with a natural hot springs spa and accommodation. Other economic activities are general agriculture and farming.
Hatzerim
Hatzerim is a kibbutz located 8 kilometers west of Beersheba in the Negev desert in Israel. It is named after the Bible (Deuteronomy 2:23) mentioning a site nearby: “And the Avims which dwelled in Hazerim”. Established in October 1946 by a young group of scouts then later joined by refugees from Iran who were referred to as “The Children of Tehran”. They then learned agriculture and military training becoming part of the Haganah ground forces. In the 1960s the Hatzerim Airbase was built nearby.
Hatzerim was one of the first kibbutzim to break the mold from traditional agriculture and start a business. Netafim is the kibbutz business that started in 1965, that designs, manufactures and distributes irrigation systems. The business is also run with two other kibbutzim, Magal and Yiftach. There are also factories around the world, California, USA, South Africa, Western Australia and more. Netafim soon became a world leader in their field as a multinational corporation that grosses over $300 million a year.
Netiv Ha-L’Heh
Netiv HaLamed-Heh is a kibbutz in central Israel. Located in the Valley of Elah, it falls under the jurisdiction of Mateh Yehuda Regional Council. In 2007 it had a population of 390. The village was established on 16 August 1949 by demobilized members of the Daled Company of the Palmach’s Harel Brigade, and was initially named Peled (an acronym for Plugot Daled, lit. Daled Company). It was later renamed after the 35 Haganah soldiers killed in a convoy to resupply the Gush Etzion kibbutzim during the 1947–1948 Civil War in Mandatory Palestine (Lamed-Heh is 35 in Hebrew numerals).
Ein Dor
Ein Dor is a kibbutz in northern Israel. Located in the Lower Galilee, it falls under the jurisdiction of Jezreel Valley Regional Council. In 2006 it had a population of 688. Ein Dor was founded in 1948 by members of the Hashomer Hatzair youth movement. The founders were from Israel, Hungary and the United States, and were joined later by members from South America.
The kibbutz is named for Endor, a village mentioned in the Bible – in accordance with the common Zionist practice of bestowing Biblical names on modern communities and towns. After the death of Prophet Samuel, King Saul comes to Endor to meet a woman medium (the Witch of Endor) who helps him to contact the spirit of Samuel. The prophecy he receives is that his army will be vanquished and that he and his sons would die in battle. (Samuel 28:3-19). However, it is by no means certain that the kibbutz’s location is anywhere near to where the Biblical village stood. An archeological museum located close to the main dining hall includes pre-historical findings from the kibbutz area.
Nizzanim
Nitzanim is a kibbutz in southern Israel. Located between Ashkelon and Ashdod on the Nitzanim dunes, it falls under the jurisdiction of Hof Ashkelon Regional Council. In 2006 it had a population of 343. The kibbutz was established after the Jewish National Fund purchased a 400-acre (1.6 km2) plot of land and a large house known as the “mansion” in 1942. The first residents were immigrants, some of whom were Holocaust survivors. It later absorbed more immigrants from Poland and Romania.
The kibbutz was captured by the Egyptian army during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War in the Battle of Nitzanim, but was recaptured by Israeli forces at the end of the conflict, after which the settlement was re-established around four kilometers south of the original location. In 1949, Nitzanim Youth Village was established on the original site. The youth village closed in 1990, and during the 1990s the communal settlement of Nitzan was founded on the site.
Alumot
Alumot is a kibbutz in the nort just west of the southernmost tip of the kinneret sea. Alumot falls under the jurisdiction of Emek HaYarden Regional Council. In 2006 it had a population of 241. The community was formed by a kvutza of graduates of the Ben Shemen Agricultural School in 1936 in Zikhron Ya’akov. In 1940 they moved to the area which is today Poria Illit, where they established a temporary settlement named Poria Alumot and earned a living from agriculture and a sanatorium named Beit Alumot after the kvutza. In 1947 they established a permanent settlement on a hill name Bitania Illit to the south of Poria Hill. However, problems with water and salt in the soil led it to be abandoned in 1967.
The following year the kibbutz was re-established by immigrants from Argentina.
Degania A’
Degania Alef is a kibbutz in northern Israel just south of the Kinneret Sea. It falls under the jurisdiction of the Emek HaYarden Regional Council. Degania Alef was the first kibbutz established by Jewish Zionist pioneers in the areas of the Land of Israel, then under Ottoman rule. It was founded in 1909 by the World Zionist Organization. In 1910 the land was handed over to a commune of workers which established itself on it in 1911. Degania Bet was established to the south in 1920. On May 20, 1948 during the Battles of the Kinarot Valley, Degania Alef and Degania Bet repelled a Syrian attack.
Degania Alef was home to many prominent Israelis and members of the Yishuv. The poet Rachel, the “prophet of labor” A.D. Gordon, and Joseph Trumpeldor all worked at Degania Alef, whilst many early members of Degania Alef left to found other kibbutzim. Gideon Baratz was the first child ever born in a kibbutz and Moshe Dayan was the second, both in Degania Alef. Technically, Degania Alef is a kvutza and not a kibbutz – the distinction comes from its small size. Degania Alef is also distinctive in that children there never slept communally – children always slept in their parents’ quarters.
In 1981, Kvutza Degania Alef was awarded the Israel Prize, for its special contribution to society and the State in social-human pioneering. In 2007, Degania Alef announced that it was to undergo privatization.” Instead of assigned jobs and equal pay under the rule of the elders, the reorganization will allow people to seek their jobs, earn their salaries, and own their homes, but still offer a social “safety net” for the weaker members of society.
