Todd Sone, 1991/92

Growing up with a strong Jewish and Zionist identity, I was given the opportunity to spend a year of high school in Israel. I fell in love with Israel, the land and its people. I was looking to return to spend another year in Israel, I chose the Rothberg International School which I attended from 1991/92.

I took many interesting courses; the following three were the most fascinating.

1. Economic Development of Israel that gave me a deeper appreciation for the remarkable accomplishments that the State has made in such a short period.
2. Jewish Poetry because Professor Yehuda Amichai is one of Israel's most renowned poets.
3. History of the Holocaust which I took in the regular university. It was a positive experience to be able to study such a difficult subject manner in Israel with Jews from all over the world.

My most meaningful experience was spending Yom Hazikaron honouring Israel's fallen soldiers and then celebrating Yom Haatzmaut in the evening.

My best activity at Rothberg was joining the hiking club. Every few weeks I met new people, saw the country, and got a better appreciation for ancient Jewish history.

Attending the Rothberg International School had a great impact on my life - it reinforced my love and commitment to Israel. It provided me with an opportunity to study Jewish subjects with professors who are at the top of their field. It was also an important personal growth experience for me - to be able to live and thrive far away from home, and it introduced me to people that have become life-long friends.

I am now married to my university-sweetheart and we have three wonderful boys. I graduated from the University of Toronto and then worked for 4 years as a management consultant. After graduating with an MBA from Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, I worked on Wall Street for 3.5 years. In the summer of 2003 we moved from New York City to Montreal where I now work in our family's generic pharmaceutical business doing financial planning.