Doug Utting - Team Israel

It means representing a people and culture that have been a large part of my upbringing. 

It means honouring my friends and teammates that have dedicated their lives to growing the game in Israel. 

It means playing for the Israeli-born lacrosse players that will make up the national team of the future. 

I am humbled to be a part of this organization.

My personal connection to Judaism comes directly from my parents. My mom is Jewish and my father is not. They both made it a priority that we celebrate all of the holidays, but that my sister and I were raised as Jews. Growing up in a small community in Ontario, there were not many other Jewish families or a synagogue for us to attend. That being said, my parents went above and beyond to make sure we felt connected to our culture. My Mom came into our school every year to teach my classmates about the Jewish religion. Our family has put on a Hanukkah party for 15 years now, which educates our family, friends, and community on the holiday, sharing our Jewish traditions. At the seder table, we always have a number of friends of various faiths, join us. Given our small Jewish community, it often meant making sacrifices to learn about our culture. We drove an hour to Hebrew school, twice a week, in the years leading up to my Bar Mitzvah. Although my father is not Jewish, he fasts on Yom Kippur, keeps kosher on Passover, and participates in all of our traditions with us. My experience and connection to Judaism is based in the culture, traditions (and of course the food!) that my parents made a purposeful commitment to providing us with, throughout the years.