www.reformjudaism.org.uk

Keren b'Kavod: Aid Efforts in Israel

Monday, 12 January 2009

The Israel Reform Movement have intensified their humanitarian aid to residents of  Sderot and other towns in the Gaza region who are under attack by Hamas. The barrage of kassam rockets and grad missiles which continue to shower the western Negev has restricted families to shelters, and essentially halted the economy of the region.

Since the beginning of the events, Keren B'Kavod, the humanitarian aid arm of the Reform Movement in Israel (that operates within IRAC), is coordinating our relief efforts in the southern communities. Those efforts include distributing food packages; supporting the local economy by arranging food purchases at local Sderot shops; distributing toys, books, and games for children spending much time confined to bomb shelters and organizing fun family trips to Jerusalem for children and their families from Sderot and  other affected cities and communities.

As part of these efforts, the first group of volunteers visited Sderot and other communities together with the professional staff of Keren B'Kavod. The primary goal of this visit was aimed at the distribution of food packages, and identification of the real needs of the different communities.

The second relief visit took place on Thursday January 8th. A group of 50 volunteers from IMPJ congregations visited Sderot, Ashkelon and other communities to distribute food and other supplies and assisted the local municipalities in their relief activities. On Monday Jan. 12th a first group of residents of the communities under attack will take part in a fun family day in Jerusalem.

In addition to Keren B'Kavod's efforts, IRAC 's legal aid centers for new immigrants continue their work serving the olim in the Sderot area. Our movement’s Department of Congregations is committed to strengthening the first seeds of Progressive Jewish activities in the kibbutzim along the Gaza border. Our partner organizations, Leo Baeck School and WUPJ's Beit Shmuel in Jerusalem, are involved in hosting school children and organizing fun activities.

We all pray for days of tranquility in our land and may the wisdom of peace will be shared by all the residents of this land. "God will give His people strength and God will bless His people in peace" (Ps 29:11).

The following account describes the personal volunteer experience of Lauren Joseph, an IRAC fellow on a recent visit to Sderot:

The day started bright and early, with three goals - to show our support for the communities in the western Negev, to deliver food packages, and to find out what these communities needed so that a volunteer event later in the week could be planned specifically to meet their needs. At 8 a.m., I met Keren B'Kavod's director, Sharona and another volunteer, Tzachi (who would also be the driver) at Beit Shmuel in Jerusalem to finish loading the truck. 33 boxes of food to deliver to two communities in the western Negev: Merchavim and Sderot. I learned that my travel companions had worked together in the 2006 B'Kavod campaign during the Second Lebanese War. They spent countless hours together on the roads then, and they were willing to do it all over again. Along the way we met another volunteer, Smadar, a Sderot native. Outside of the car, the sun was shining and the sky was clear- it was hard to imagine that on such a beautiful day, where kids are meant to be playing outside, laughing and having a good time - they were stuck indoors for fear that a rocket might land in their backyard.

The four of us traveled first to Merchavim to meet with a community leader. There we learned what their community needed- if we could provide them with professional entertainment to provide some distractions for the families in the area. We delivered boxes of food to be distributed to needy families there- something I learned  throughout the day was in extraordinary demand. From there we went to a local bomb shelter- to see what B'Kavod's volunteers could do there later in the week. Upon arrival, a siren went off- rushing to the shelter, we discovered that this was only a test- to see if the alarm system was working. It was. And it wasn't before long that we learned a rocket had hit the market in S'derot, our next destination. On the road to Sderot, within a mile of Gaza, you could see pillars of smoke from the other side of the border.  Until this point, I had been able to push most of my feelings aside, knowing that this was important work- but when you realize just how close you are, reality sets in.

When we arrived in Sderot, we went straight to the "House of Volunteers" which was inundated with youth in their late teens and early twenties. We met with two people – who were coordinating much of the relief efforts that go on in Sderot. Both were incredibly busy, so the conversation was quick, but meaningful. We learned more about the specific needs of Sderot. There are homes without fortified rooms or shelters, and with only 15 seconds between the "siren" and the "boom," families are restricted to the bomb shelters. Children in bomb shelters for hours on end need toys, games, and books; they need some form of entertainment to escape from their reality.  We delivered the remainder of the food packages, and learned that even if we could have brought double, there would still be families in need. On the way out we stopped at Smadar's mother's home, only three houses down from where a kassam hit- the roof destroyed. At 83, Smadar's mother lives alone, and has no immediate access to a shelter. While one was built for her in the backyard, the door was never built, so during a siren, she stands in a doorway.  However, she continues to smile- and she volunteers at the Old Age Home. While there is a need for financial assistance, and food and toys are a must, the number of volunteers in Sderot and the continued optimism of her residents let us know that Keren B'Kavod will truly make a difference.

On the way home, phone calls were made- to coordinate the day of volunteering later in the week and a "Day of Fun" bringing the residents of the western Negev to Jerusalem for a day of enjoyment, away from the shelters and the sirens. There was an overall sense of accomplishment. We did something good. We will continue to do something good. The work that Keren B'Kavod does is so important- the needs of these communities are so great, and while they give us hope, they rely on our assistance to survive. I am grateful to work at the Israel Religious Action Center and to know that through IRAC, I can make a difference.