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\u201cI could have stayed with my already full routine,\u201d Rubinstein said. \u201cInstead, I felt I needed to do more.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rubinstein, who lives in the West Bank settlement of Peduel, holds a doctorate in chemistry and works as a researcher at Tel Aviv University. She also lectures at universities and colleges and teaches high school chemistry at the Ort Shomron girls\u2019 religious high school.<\/p>\n
She said she chose teaching after recognizing a growing shortage of science educators, even though some questioned the move.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I decided to teach high school, people told me, \u2018You\u2019re wasting yourself,\u2019\u201d she said. \u201cI see it as a mission. I\u2019m helping raise the next generation of women scientists.\u201d<\/p>\n
Beyond the lab and classroom, Rubinstein has taken on another unexpected role. She is a licensed snake catcher certified by Israel\u2019s Nature and Parks Authority and has safely removed dozens of snakes from nearby communities.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve never been afraid of snakes,\u201d she said. \u201cI\u2019ve always liked them. I realized I could help people who are terrified.\u201d<\/p>\n
She said the most important part of the job often comes after the capture \u2014 calming residents and explaining that snakes generally want to escape homes just as much as people want them gone.<\/p>\n
Earlier this year, Rubinstein added yet another responsibility. She enlisted through \u201cPhase B Recruitment,\u201d an IDF program allowing people who were previously exempt to serve during wartime. After completing basic training, she contacted several units on her own initiative and now serves as a corporal in a role that draws on her scientific expertise.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt 18, I should have enlisted,\u201d she said. \u201cNational service didn\u2019t feel meaningful enough for me. I always felt I could have contributed more in the army.\u201d<\/p>\n
Military service is a family affair. Her husband is a reserve officer who has logged more than 200 days of service with the Home Front Command since the war began. All of her brothers serve in the reserves, her 70-year-old father continues to volunteer and her eldest daughter, a high school senior, is set to enlist soon.<\/p>\n
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