Friends:
I meant to write yesterday but could not because of the (Jewish) Sabbath and then as soon it was over, our team was back into action. I have to be honest. I slept for 13 hours and actually took time out to hold my wife’s hand. We had not done this in a week and those small things that can get away from you can be incredibly uplifting. As the Sabbath ended, we drank a glass of wine and listened to a beautiful song called I Genitori by Yanni and Renee Fleming. The moment lasted four minutes but it allowed us to escape from this craziness for just a brief period of time. Today’s update will be all over the place and parts may be difficult to read so I will entrust you with whether or not you wish to continue…….
Sunday: Today is Day 9 of this life changing ordeal. There were no air raid sirens (in our village) on the Sabbath and that – in and of itself – was restorative. Unfortunately, the rest of the country cannot say the same. On Friday I learned that a young man my son and I went to Poland with (to visit the concentration camps) was killed at the Supernova Music Festival where 260 youth were killed by Hamas last Saturday. His name was David Newman, and he was 25. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bPUnYPBgFHA. As if the cruelty of terrorists arriving at a music festival with machine guns was not enough, they blocked all of the exits and stood out on the highway. As people were fleeing the concert, Hamas was able to maximize the casualties by shooting at the cars and teens running through the fields.
Neighbors: Every neighbor has a story about someone that they knew, murdered senselessly by Hamas. Although I lived in NY on 9-11, I do not remember personally knowing so many people that had lost relatives, friends and children. The trauma that will live with this generation is palpable in every conversation, every glance and every touch. It is the only thing people are talking about and you just cannot escape it. A few of the people in my life:
My friend HarEl came to my house on Friday morning. HarEl is 6”2 and looks like he is about to get in the ring with Rocky. He was screaming: “David, they killed all my friends. All of them. Every one. There is nobody left! They took my Professor hostage. She is a 75-year-old woman and now she is in Gaza. 75! What am I to do? Where do I go? All of my closest friends have been killed. I just saw them one week ago.” Then he collapsed into my arms. A moment later he was up screaming again, got into his truck and drove off. It was a moment I will never forget, as long as I live.
My neighbor Nati has been unable to sleep since the attacks. He sits on his balcony all night staring at the valley behind our home to make sure there are no terrorists approaching. He has no gun, but he has a phone and he has fear and that is enough. When the sun rises, he goes to bed and his wife and children take a turn.
My friend Moti went to a funeral for his son’s friend late last week. While he was at the funeral, Hamas fired a missile at the crowd gather to pay their last respects. They were unable to complete the funeral as it was no longer safe to be in the area. The funeral will continue when it is safe to return.
My son, 21, was asked if he can come help to dig graves and bury some of the bodies as they do not have enough people to assist in this effort. He had to decline given the fact that is a “Kohen” (related to the high priests of the Temple) and as such, he cannot be around a dead body. Nevertheless, he found other ways to help.
My neighbor Ari, a young man, spends his week at a boarding school near the Dead Sea. His close friend, Eliyahu was 21 years old and killed when Hamas terrorists found him down south and shot him dead.
These are just a few of the people I spoke with over the last 48 hours or so. There are so many. What do we tell them? How do we restore their hope, their faith, their dreams?
My youngest son is autistic and he asked why so many people hate us. I assured him this is not the case. I told him about people in Tokyo singing Hatikvah (the Israeli national anthem) and people in New York marching with the Israeli flag, but his emotions are real. We posted something on LinkedIn that was hardly controversial. It read: Israel is currently facing a difficult time as it deals with an invasion. We want to remind everyone that there are no winners in war. Every conflict brings pain, suffering, and loss to everyone involved. Our thoughts are with our employees and their families in the region. They are more than just team members; they are part of our extended family. We stand by them during these challenging times and offer our unwavering support and solidarity. We humbly ask for your prayers for Israel. Let’s send thoughts of peace, healing, and unity to this beautiful land and its people.
Differing Views: What we got back were despicable comments. How can we support Israel? How? Israel was invaded. Israel was attacked, Women were raped in front of their families. Hamas is sending these same families videos of their infants in Gaza (that have now been taken hostage) and are threatening to kill them. There is a concept in Judaism of “Dignity for the dead.” This means we do not show pictures of babies without heads and women that have been raped, but Hamas proudly took a video of one of their terrorists taking off a baby’s head with a shovel! Yes, this is hard to hear but it is the reality. There will be no such thing as a proportionate response because we will not stoop to that level. Israel has no interest in hurting the women and children of Gaza. Yet there are individuals like Professor Joseph Massad of Columbia University praising the acts of Hamas calling them “awesome” and “incredible” and John Sergeant – a journalist in the UK – saying on TV that “Slitting babies throats is not terrorism” so how do I provide my son the answer to his questions? The flip side of that coin is there are people like Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin who on Friday said the following: “I know ISIS and Hamas is worse than ISIS.” Then you have people like Putin that criticize Israel for their response. Last time I checked Mr. Putin did not seem too concerned with avoiding civilian casualties.
Lessons Learned: When Gilad Shalit was released by Hamas in October of 2011, Israel exchanged 1,027 terrorists in exchange for his freedom. One of those – Ali Qadi, a senior commander in Hamas – was released in exchange for Shalit. Dozens and dozens of those individuals have gone on to commit terrorist attacks since their release and Qadi was finally killed by the Israeli military this past Friday. The Mor family, whose son was taken hostage last Saturday has said, “We will not agree to Shalit 2.0……We will refuse any deal, even at the cost of our son’s life.” Imagine. As much as the Mor’s love their son, the nation of Israel paid too high a price for Gilad’s life and this vicious cycle of terrorism just does not end. They recognize, as we all do, there will be no more “exchanges.”
Drawing Inspiration: This morning we went outside. Understand we now walk around with a gun everywhere we go, always looking over our shoulder. We have armed volunteers at the edge of our village stopping every car, making sure everyone is checked. On our car and every car in the village were notes and pictures from little children encouraging us to stay strong. I’m from Boston so the expression “Boston Strong” (created after the Marathon bombing in 2013) resonates with me, and these little notes drawn by six- and seven-year-olds really warm our hearts.
Time to Leave? Someone called me on Friday and said, “Why don’t you leave?” That’s a hard question to answer. It did not occur to me that I might die but what if this escalates into a war with Iran, Lebanon and Syria? Yet even with that thought I cannot leave. Not now. When your family is attacked, when your friends are attacked….you do not run. When people are in need, you do not run. When communities are destroyed and need to be rebuilt, you do not run. When families are not with their children, you do not run. When you are the front line, you do not run. When we were in NY on 9-11, we did not run and we will not run now. We are part of something bigger. We will ensure that the Holy Land will continue to be a place where all are free to worship and all are welcomed with open arms.
What We are Accomplishing: What have we accomplished with your help in the last 48 hours? We have brought food, medical supplies, socks, underwear, tourniquets, bread and blankets to those that need. Your donations have gone a long way. Feel free to send me email addresses of those that may be interested in reading this journal. Help us book fifteen minute discussions over ZOOM or speakerphone with your friends, church/synagogue groups, please donate. There are families in need, security provisions that must be paid for, communities that must be rebuilt. The list is endless. I am cognizant of the fact there are many out there trying to help. I can tell you our effort is just a bunch of friends, neighbors and volunteers doing their part. We are getting food and materials disseminated as fast as humanly possible. With your help, we will continue these efforts. Until my next note on Tuesday –
Pictures attached:
10 Ways to Help:
- Please donate. We have spent far more than we have taken in. You can donate in the USA via Zelle: 8453818180. This is not tax-deductible and in the spirit of disclosure, goes to my bank account. 100% of the funds go to those in need.
- Please donate. You can donate via credit card and this is tax deductible to a registered 501c3 charity. Here is the link: https://secure.cardknox.com/zichrontzvielimelech. If you give here you must out the word “Rescue” in the subject line when making the donation or the funds will not be allocated properly. We are not the only group they are assisting. 95% of the funds go to those in need.
- Pray. We believe in the power of prayer, Psalms and however we can get help from the One Above. Pslams – Chapter 20 is particularly poignant at times like these.
- Book a time for me or one of our volunteers to speak to your church or synagogue or civic group over ZOOM about our experience here. Why is this important? We feel compelled to share the real story with the world. We want people to know what is happening here so this event does not repeat itself. Awareness is a good thing.
- Book a flight here. I know this may sound crazy but please understand airlines have shut us down. We cannot get in or out now. Delta, United and American have all suspended flights. El Al, our national airline may be an option, but you’ll need to check with them. If people book flights, they will see there is still a demand.
- Send cards and pictures of support. We’ll distribute them to people and soldiers and let them know they are not alone.
- If you can find a way to Israel, bring a dufflebag of shirts, underwear, coffee. Believe me, it will get used.
- Spread the word. Write your local politician and let them know Israel has a right to defend itself. Let’s not underestimate the power of the USA. If the USA asks Israel to “go easy on the response,” that is what will happen. Let them know we cannot go easy when children are being slaughtered.
- Help rebuilding efforts. Several of the villages down south are thinking about what happens after the war with respect to all of the destroyed homes and schools. Places like Kibbutz Alumim – which has been around for 57 years and employed many foreign agricultural workers – are seeking assistance in these efforts.
- If you prefer not to give money, have an Amazon order sent to: WWJ LTD. Ha’Tzaba’a 9 – Beit Shemesh 99641 – Please keep the order under $75.00 so as to avoid duty and VAT but items such as underwear, socks, towels, thermal underwear and toiletries are in short supply. We will make sure they are given out to those in need.
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David
David at People for Israel
USA: +1.201.801.6440
Israel: +972.52.705.6300
david@peopleforisrael.com
www.peopleforisrael.com
Since October 7, 2023
