When Rachel Koenigson was in 10th grade, she extended an Israel study and tour program to spend time with her parents who had come for a visit. While at the airport waiting to head home, the airline announced the need to bump a passenger from their flight. The teenager immediately shouted, “I'll do it!” Her mother's response: “You can come back after high school,” so she did. Koenigson arrived in Israel in September 2003, so sure of her decision about making aliya that she didn't even apply to college in the US. “I grew up in a very Zionistic home,” the New Jersey native says. “My parents always spoke about Israel. It was the only natural place for me to be.” Her first trip in 1999 was with her father to celebrate her bat mitzva. The experience, she says, was like a “homecoming” that made her more focused, and it showed. Back in the US, she became head of her yeshiva's Israel Action Committee, keeping her fellow students updated about, among other issues, the second intifada, which was in full force. A friend even told Koenigson she was different after her trip and that she was sure she would be moving to the Jewish state. The high-school study abroad program a few years later solidified her decision and fulfilled her friend's prophecy. “Being independent of my family, meeting Israelis, touring the land, and being part of Israeli society was the turning point,” the 31-year-old explains. “I was more immersed than on my previous 10-day trip. It didn't feel foreign to me at all. It didn't feel strange. It felt natural.” First on the to-do list was national service. A new immigrant herself, she worked with Nefesh b'Nefesh for a year, assisting new immigrants with their pre-aliya process. Second on the list was learning the language and meeting people. The then 19-year-old enrolled in Migdal Oz in Gush Etzion, an all-women's learning program, where she studied exclusively in Hebrew. Then came her career path. “When I was at Migdal Oz, I volunteered at the pool with kids who were mostly autistic,” she relates. “There was a special weekly class to help them relax and move their muscles in a different way. We also played games so there was a social aspect. I really enjoyed it.” Originally looking toward physical therapy, Koenigson realized she wanted to work with anatomy and rehabilitation using aspects of hydrotherapy – basically, physical therapy in the water. She chose a slightly different route than she had planned and pursued massage, personal training and Chinese medicine. “It is the way life takes you,” she says of her decision. “All of this has allowed me to use the skills of hydrotherapy on dry land and has given me the ability to understand physical issues.” Post-national service, Koenigson began studying at the Wingate Institute in Netanya, the National Center for Physical Education and Sport. She completed her personal training certificate in 2007 and a four-year program in Chinese medicine at Reidman College's Jerusalem branch. Since then, the Jerusalemite has been an independent contractor at the King David Hotel gym, where she works as a personal trainer and massage therapist. Her focus is treating orthopedic issues through massage and acupuncture. With clients ranging from 12 to 90 years old, she devises an individual plan for each of them using the skills she has amassed over the past 10 years. “Life is stressful. As a masseuse, I try to ease the dayto- day stress that most people carry with them. As an acupuncturist, I treat clients for various ailments and bring their bodies back into balance.” Many of her clients beyond the 50-years-old mark are those who want to address their aches and pains or work on their balance and posture. Her younger clients often work on weight loss and orthopedic issues related to sports activities. Her triple approach of personal training, massage and Chinese medicine enables her to view health from a holistic perspective. “I really believe in treating the body as a whole and not just the symptoms of an issue,” she explains. “I never really connected with Western medicine, so it's a perfect fit for me.” In addition to her regular venue and clientele, Koenigson volunteers monthly at the Michael Levin Lone Soldier Center. “I took some time after finishing Chinese medicine searching for the niche that is right for me, and I found it treating soldiers during their service,” she explains. “As they come home from base for the weekend, we talk about what they want to treat. They have a lot of orthopedic issues, like shin splints from wearing boots, and I also try to give them calming treatments so they can just enjoy the weekend. It's amazing how quickly you see results; 45 minutes later, they wake up a new person.” A decade after she began her career journey, Koenigson feels she is accomplishing her core mission, which is to help people with overall health and wellness. “I'm trying to achieve this with each client according to their needs,” she explains, adding that after changing her own unhealthy lifestyle while in high school, she now practices yoga, enjoys Pilates, and swims. Koenigson has a positive outlook on her future, committing herself only to things that make her happy. Moving to Israel and living in Jerusalem have proven the value of living according that personal philosophy. “I really love this city and can't see myself far away,” she says. “There's a spirituality to it. Just as Israel feels like home for most Diaspora Jews, Jerusalem is home for me. I like the dynamics, and I like that it's a new city that looks and feels old and new at the same time. It is the epitome of our existence. We have so much technology here, but with a deep connection to the past.”
Rachel Koenigson in action(photo credit: DONI LERNER/MIRI FURST HOMA)