How do you look back on the craziest 10-day stretch of your life? Alephs, BBGs, and my siblings from across BBYO, thank you. 

This weekend, we drew on connections across continents, countries, and cultures to be in one space. To look out into that room Saturday night, I stood alongside 11 of the strongest leaders I have ever met – the 101st Grand Board and the 81st International Board. Their leadership, bold ideas, and dedication to the Order continue to inspire growth in AZA and BBG every day

To be in a single room full of voices from so many parts of the world is not just the fabric of BBYO; it is the fabric of the Jewish people. It is our nature to come together as a people and build community in whatever space we enter. We do this in cities and countries, across oceans and time zones. It is our nature to turn whichever spaces are new to us into home.

This past weekend brought together the most diverse IC we have ever had, with a record 39 countries represented in the convention. Leadership from smaller Jewish communities stepped into IC from the United Arab Emirates, Peru, South Korea, and communities that rarely see themselves reflected in global Jewish spaces. But beyond that diversity of national representation, we did so into smaller communities across the United States as well. Teens from Puerto Rico, Hawaii, Mississippi, and more were in attendance. Our movement, this past weekend, was more than just a home for our members; it was a home for our people. 

The passion of generations came to life in each moment, led by our body. The thunderous roar of generations on Thursday night's opening ceremonies, as we did the roll call of our international convention, raised eyebrows. The screams that filled the boulevard Saturday night in our spirit circle will serve as a memory forever. The echoes of “AZA” filled an election room on Sunday afternoon. That noise is not just sound but a statement: the pride felt this weekend will be heard throughout the world, far beyond Philadelphia. 

When I reflect on IC 2026, I see passion, pride, and community in ways I never knew I would. I see the moments, the small ones and the big ones, that shape someone's life unfolding in real time. I see the young Aleph I was at my first IC, caught up in the size of posters and scale of a hotel, realizing that this, in fact, is for me too. I see the change I imagined for this movement materializing in front of me. I see the impact of this weeken,d leaving the doors of that convention center and traveling home to every corner of our order for years to come. I see the power each Aleph and BBG can materialize in ways they don’t even know yet. 

As Mercedes said last Thursday, “BBYO sees potential in you long before you see it in yourself.”

Fraternally,
Aleph Logan Bennett Reich | 101st Grand Aleph Godol