Israel Defense Force Visits Lake Catholic

Inevitably, when the Israeli Defense Force -- Israel's national military -- visits a school to talk about their work and country, somebody asks them what type of gun they use, Lt. Col. Vered Shochat said.

The question came up quickly when the IDF visited Friday afternoon.

However, Capt. Yonit Leizerovitch did not say what type of gun she used.

"The purpose of our visit here is to expose you to the other side of the army," she said.

"We use ammunition but it's not the main thing we do. We educate," she said. "We want to expose you to a different part of the army and a different part of the world."

Shochat and Leizerovitch work at Havat HaShomer, an IDF base for at-risk young men and women. The people who come to Havat HaShomer come from backgrounds of crime, drugs or other disadvantages.

Through an intensive 3-month training program, the people at the camp are prepared for military service. (Serving in the IDF is mandatory for the men and women of Israel.)

Havat HaShomer is supported by the Jewish Federation of Cleveland, which organized the IDF's visit Friday along with Lake Catholic Board Member Joseph Compton.

Compton told the Lake Catholic students that he arranged the IDF's visit because it would give them a greater appreciation of the world.

"I wanted to bring them here today because the Middle East is completely different from anything you know," Compton said.

'What's going on in the rest of the world...'

Though shy at first, the students began to pepper the soldiers with questions about the IDF and Israel.

"How do people in Israel view America?" one student asked.

"In Israel, we see Amercia as the big brother because we receive a lot of support from them," Leizerovitch said.

"Are you optimistic about the chance of peace in the Middle East?"

"Very optimistic. It is in my nature," one soldier replied. "You have to be optimistic," he added.

"Are women treated different than the men in training?"

"Nobody spoils the girls in Israel's army," Leizerovitch replied.

"What do you do for entertainment?"

"We live the same life as you," Leizerovitch said. "We go the mall or dancing clubs."

Lake Catholic Senior Ivan Filipovic said the IDF's visit helped his expand his world view.

"Even being a first-generation immigrant (from Bosnia,) I still get caught up mostly in what's going on here," he said. "Our generation and people in America, we don't always see what's going on in the rest of the world."

'A life behind the uniform'

The first thing 1st Lt. Adi Katz told the students is that she was a mother.

She said told them this because she wanted them to know that -- even though she was a soldier -- she was not just a soldier.

"When people see the uniform, they forget there is a life behind the uniform," Katz said.

But the students saw beyond the uniforms Friday.

Though the first question a student asked was about guns, the last question they asked was more personal.

"How often do you get to see your family?" one student asked.

"Everyday," Katz replied with a smile.