Telfed: Operation Protective Edge

Israel is certainly facing a cruel and ruthless adversary. The challenge to the IDF’s ethics and morality has been tested to the limit. Our hearts and prayers go out to the families of the 68 soldiers and the civilians who have died in defence of our country, and we wish the wounded a full and speedy recovery.

Everyone in Israel is enormously grateful for the Iron Dome anti-missile protection system, but it is the resilience of our people of which we can all be especially proud. We continue to seek and pray for a long-term solution that will resolve these endless rounds of conflict with those that seek our destruction.

Herewith some information on Telfed’s activities during the past few difficult weeks:

• We started a telephone campaign (coordinated by Telfed’s head of volunteer division Netta Steiner) to people in the south within days of the operation commencing. Telfed’s staff, together with several volunteers called hundreds of people and in the most the response has been positive and people appreciate the gesture.

• We extended the calls to other regions as rockets started falling in areas north of Ashkelon.

• Telfed Klitah Counselor Susan Sharon was in close contact with our lone soldiers.

• Volunteer coordinator Netta Steiner also helped Telfed Jerusalem volunteers Daniel Winer and Roy Scher to organise a campaign to help the community of Dimona, in the South.

• We launched a ‘Host and Post’ initiative on our website where we invite Southern Africans to offer their homes to host fellow Southern Africans from the south to give them a respite from the fighting. Within 24 hours we had over 50 offers.

• In coordination with the Telfed Regional Committee in Ashkelon, Netta Steiner organised volunteers to provide activities for children in that city during these difficult times.

• A programme has been spearheaded by volunteer Ilana Bank of Ra’anana, together with Telfed, whereby children in the centre and north are being encouraged to fill brightly wrapped shoe boxes with sweets and toys, which are then dispatched to the children in Ashkelon, in a gesture of solidarity.