JUF escorts community leaders on a solidarity mission to Israel

In December, a group of 24 lay leaders and rabbis from Chicago went on a three-day solidarity mission to Israel. We traveled to our war-torn homeland to better understand the needs on the ground, see our JUF dollars at work, and demonstrate our Jewish community’s unwavering support for our greater Israeli family.

This was a trip like none that any of us has taken before, a trip that told a tale of two countries. In the charred remains of Kibbutz Nir Oz, we saw scenes of devastation that will be forever burned in our memories, the results of unprecedented hate and the worst of human behavior. But everywhere else, we saw extraordinary ways the country was coming together to support one another and make the nation whole.

Israeli society has been galvanized. There is a juxtaposition of sorrow and resolve, which is being channeled into efforts to bring healing to those in need. Everyone is focused on what they can do to help their neighbors, from harvesting crops for short-handed farmers to working with evacuated youth.

 

We were inspired by our visit to Kfar Maccabiah, which overnight transformed itself from a village hosting athletic games to a campus housing 1,000 evacuees, complete with social services, food, and other essentials. We were deeply moved by our tour of Kfar Maccabiah’s “glamping” compound, where survivors of the Nova festival are receiving trauma therapy. While there, we saw tables piled high with donated clothing for the residents-and all the merchandise was new. People from across the country had gone out, bought new clothes, and sent them to strangers.

Which is, of course, is exactly what Chicago’s Jewish community has done through its support of the JUF Annual Campaign and Israel Emergency Fund, which are fueling the efforts of every site we visited. It was deeply meaningful to see the ways our JUF dollars are providing hope and help everywhere, from trauma counseling at NATAL and Helem Club, to first responders at Magen David Adom and United Hatzalah, to humanitarian aid for evacuees at Social Delivery and Pitchon Lev.

As we met with the director of Soroka Medical Center, a medevac helicopter landed on the grounds carrying three young soldiers who had been wounded in battle. It was a painful dose of Israel’s daily reality as each of us imagined what the parents of those young men were going through. We later learned that one of the soldiers didn’t make it.

What a sad and sobering reminder of the importance of JUF’s support for the JAFI Victims of Terror Fund, which provides emergency grants to the injured, and to families who have lost a loved one.

The survivors of Kibbutz Nir Oz comprise a devastating number of those families; one-quarter of its population was either murdered or taken hostage during the October 7 attack, and only six buildings remain. Our group met with representatives from the Nir Oz community, which JUF has pledged to assist in their recovery. Kiryat Gat-in the heart of JUF’s Partnership Region-will be home for the Nir Oz evacuees for at least the next year while the government rebuilds their kibbutz. During that time, JUF will be proud to provide support to help the residents heal emotionally, socially, and physically.

 

During this trip, it was clear: Every Israeli understands and appreciates the support of North American Jewry, in terms of both advocacy and financial resources. That’s one of the things that Israeli President Isaac Herzog expressed to us when we met with him and his wife, Michal. In addition to expressing gratitude for our community’s support, President Herzog shared his concern about rising antisemitism in the U.S. Israelis are worried about us, too-especially given incidents on campus, which are making the news there. Israelis see American Jews under attack and want to stand in solidarity with us, too, just as we stand with them.

It felt essential for us to come to bear witness to the layers of trauma our greater Israeli family has experienced, while demonstrating our Chicago Jewish community’s deep commitment to them. We came away humbled by the extraordinary resilience of the Israeli people, and more committed than ever to JUF’s pivotal role in providing support to help make the country whole again.

David Golder is the chair of the JUF Board of Directors and Lonnie Nasatir is the president of JUF.

Here are reflections from some of the participants who attended the mission:

“It is hard to summon words fitting to describe my recent experience in Israel. Despite the immense evil wrought upon all of the people in Israel over these last few months, somehow there is hope and possibility. I left Israel with so many incredible people and organizations in my heart who have been working non-stop to bring powerful light amidst such unfathomable darkness. I feel profoundly grateful to JUF not only for the experience, but for the expansive and deep impact of the Israel Emergency Fund in supporting such efforts.

~Rabbi Wendi Geffen, North Shore Congregation Israel

“I saw the beauty of the Israeli people shine forth in all of its power, responding to horror with strength, meeting hatred with love, and confronting despair with hope. Person by person, organization by organization, each with whom we met demonstrated with clarity the deep connection and love that each Israeli had for the other, that each Jew cared for her fellow Jew. This profound love and connection translated into people turning their lives over in order to help their fellow citizens in need. During a time when Israelis and Jews around the world are divided on so many things, this demonstration of love and unity was both incredible and inspiring. Love is more than a feeling. Israelis demonstrated to me the extent of their love through the sacrifices they have made one for another and through their willingness to turn their lives upside down to help people they don’t even know.”

 ~Rabbi Michael Schwab, North Suburban Synagogue Beth El

 

“Heart-wrenching and heartwarming are the best ways to describe the three extraordinary days of the recent JUF mission to Israel. We walked through destruction at Kibbutz Oz and saw the homes and residents who asked for our prayers and advocacy. We saw a helicopter bringing wounded soldiers directly to Soroka Hospital. We also saw the lifesaving and life-changing work of JUF. We spoke with survivors, displaced persons, and professionals who look to our community to make a difference in their lives. We must never forget what happened on October 7. We must never forget what happened on October 7. We should also never forget what happened on October 8 and to this very day-the inspired response and the unity of the entire Jewish community in support of Israel.”

~Rabbi Leonard A. Matanky, Ph.D., Congregation K.I.N.S. of West Rogers Park, and Dean of Ida Crown Jewish Academy

 ”The Solidarity Mission was one of the most inspiring missions I have ever completed to Israel. It was constantly a contrast between extreme sadness, anger, and gratification and inspiration of the Israeli people. In my opinion, the country is united to each other in a way that I have never seen before. Yet all the citizens are suffering from a trauma so severe that it will take a generation to work through the psychological scars. Our visit was designed to show that the Chicago Jewish people will be here for Israel today, tomorrow, and forever, I think by constantly going back to Israel over the coming years we will demonstrate our commitment. I will be back many times. I’m grateful for the work the Federation does and the resources that we have on the ground in Israel. Only through a strong Federation were we able to provide the resources we have employed.”

~Carey Cooper, JUF 2023 Annual Campaign Chair

“Being in Israel felt different than ever before. Israelis are fighting for their very survival. The trauma experienced on and after October 7 was felt everywhere we went and by every person we spoke to. While we saw a very vulnerable Israel, we were heartened by its resiliency and strength. Civil society has come together to volunteer. New NGOs have been created and existing ones have been transformed to address the unprecedented needs. Every Israeli we met was concerned about antisemitism in the United States. This reinforced the solidarity of our people and the importance of Israeli/diaspora relationships.”

~ Wendy C. Abrams, JUF Board member

“On our leadership mission to Israel, we were witness to the pain and the resolve of the people. Most of all, we were privileged to see the resiliency of our brothers and sisters. Israelis do not wait for others to do the work; they take responsibility and act. From feeding and clothing displaced people to housing them to caring for the nation’s trauma, Israelis truly are their brother’s and sister’s keepers. The projects that JUF supports are helping Israelis support each other in truly remarkable ways. All of Chicago should take proud in the remarkable work of JUF’s Israel Emergency Fund.”

~Rabbi Michael Siegel, Anshe Emet Synagogue

“Nothing can prepare you to walk through a place like Kibbutz Nir Oz, one of 22 small communities in the Gaza Envelope in the south of Israel that woke to unspeakable horrors on October 7. Virtually no home is habitable and there is no one in this little country that isn’t suffering from trauma. “We were proud to see our JUF funds at work, enabling key NGO partners to house, feed, and clothe the 250,000 evacuees; providing daycare and schooling for kids cramped into unfamiliar hotels and hostels; providing trauma counseling; meeting the urgent short-term needs of the Nir Oz community; and so much more.”

~Keith Shapiro, JUF Campaign Chair 2024