Jewish Telegraphic Agency writer Brian Seidman reported reported on June 27th that Joseph Ferraro, on a ten-day trip to Israel to explore his Jewish heritage, died within two hours after arriving at Newark International Airport on his return from Israel.

Ferraro, a film student at the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) was 20 years old and had been on the ‘Birthright Israel program’ to explore his Jewish heritage. There were several Deaf students on the trip and Ferraro, who knew sign language, “helped with bridging the two groups. I couldn’t believe at the end of the trip how well they were mixing. Joe was part of the reason this happened”, says trip adviser and Rochester Institute professor Ellie Rosenfield. It was discovered that the flu-like symptoms Ferraro had was bacterial meningitis. The Rochester News reports that New Jersey health officials advised 13 other passengers on Ferraro’s flight to take antibiotic injections as a safety precaution. During Ferraro’s stay in Israel, he wore tallit and tefillin in a personal Bar Mitzvah ceremony at the Western Wall. He told his Birthright group that he was moved by thoughts of his grandmother as he stood there. It was the second trip organized by the Birthright program which is funded by Jewish philanthropists Charles Bronfman and Michael Steinhardt. Contributions may be made to the Joseph T. Ferraro Memorial Fund, c/o 268 Scholfield Road, Rochester, NY 14617.