Ukrainian immigrant in Israel volunteers amid war with Hamas

Leonid Shmaliy had his life changed when he left Donetsk, Ukraine, for Israel. Now, he wants to do something to give back.

  LEONID SHMALIY, 26 FROM DONETSK, UKRAINE TO KARMIEL, 2014 (photo credit: Courtesy Leonid Shmaliy)
LEONID SHMALIY, 26 FROM DONETSK, UKRAINE TO KARMIEL, 2014
(photo credit: Courtesy Leonid Shmaliy)

Leonid Shmaliy, 26, escaped the beleaguered city of Donetsk during the Russo-Ukrainian war in 2014. He was 18 years old and an only child. His parents remained in the city. Aliyah changed his life, and the opportunity to go to college, given to him by the Atidim Takeoff program, has put him on track for a hope-filled future.

From a young age, Shmaliy had two passions: Judaism and mechanics. His parents sent him to tech clubs as a child, which fueled his love of mechanical engineering. After graduating high school, he fulfilled his dream of making aliyah.

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“I did a one-year program in Karmiel with other immigrants from all over the world,” says Shmaliy. “I learned basic Hebrew, made many friends, and got to know the land, history, and people of Israel. I was adopted by an Israeli family; absolutely incredible people.”

Following this program, Shmaliy was drafted into the IDF. He served in the Iron Dome Missile Unit, transporting the rocket launchers that protected Israel’s citizens from frequent attacks. “I loved being in the army,” he says. “My unit lived in tents in the desert, and that was an unforgettable experience. It cemented my connection to Israel and my desire to build my future here.”

Shmaliy completed his service and returned to Karmiel. During this time, he worked in a factory and studied for his college entrance exams. He did a pre-academic preparatory course (mechina) at the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology.

 A campus view of the Technion, Israel Institute of Technology, in the northern Israeli city of Haifa, on February 19, 2019.  (credit: HADAS PARUSH/FLASH90)
A campus view of the Technion, Israel Institute of Technology, in the northern Israeli city of Haifa, on February 19, 2019. (credit: HADAS PARUSH/FLASH90)

“I bought a 3D printer with a CNC machine and other equipment, which helped me to significantly increase my knowledge in different areas,” he says. “I then worked for another year repairing and creating exhibits at a science museum to save money for college.”

His love of mechanical engineering led him to Braude College of Engineering, where he is majoring in industrial engineering and management. He heard about the Takeoff program, which has transformed his college experience.

“I have been on my own for a number of years, and I wasn’t sure how I would afford tuition, my living expenses, and still have the time to study,” he explains. “I am very grateful for Takeoff’s support, and I will try to justify the trust placed in me.”

Shmaliy wanted to do something to give back, alongside his studies. He volunteered for a program that helps special-needs adults make a living. When he went to their place of work, he immediately saw that many of them had trouble cutting the material they were working with. He went home and designed and printed out a device that made it possible for them to work more efficiently. “The joy on their faces when they first used my prototype was priceless,” he says.

Volunteering amid the Israel-Hamas war

NOW, YEARS after making aliyah, Shmaliy finds himself facing another war; a war for his beloved homeland. The October 7 massacre by Hamas and the ensuing Iron Swords war have changed the reality for all Israelis. Shmaliy feels that now is not the time for emotion or fear. It is a time for everyone to do what they can for the country.


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He has not yet been called up for reserve duty. With the academic year postponed indefinitely due to the war, Shmaliy, who is going into his sophomore year and is a prolific inventor, has not been sitting idly by. He is working on the development of a special armrest for the Safed Medical Center Emergency Room and Orthopedic Department.

“When people are wounded or injured, it is difficult for them to rest their arm on the very narrow and uncomfortable armrests, and this makes it hard for the medical team to draw blood. I’ve developed an armrest that is wider, more comfortable, and can be tailored for each patient according to their abilities. It is also anti-bacterial,” explains Shmaliy.

“This is an expansion of an armrest I made last year for people in wheelchairs,” he continues.

Shmaliy praises the head of his faculty, who sees the potential in her students and then matches them with different projects. He will shortly begin working on a large-scale innovative project but says that he cannot divulge the details at this point.

He feels that this war plays a different role for him than the one in Ukraine. “Partly, such an attitude is connected to the fact that I served in the IDF and received a lot of support as a lone soldier. Not only do I not want to leave this country, but on the contrary, it instills even greater patriotism in me and a desire to work for the common good.”

Shmaliy’s father and grandparents still live in Ukraine, but his mother made aliyah three years ago. He tries to help her out financially, as the adjustment has not been easy.

This has made the support he receives from his Takeoff sponsors even more significant. “I am able to go to college because of the wide-ranging financial, academic, and social support that the Takeoff program provides; because of incredible people in Canada who have never even met me,” he says.

Shmaliy’s sponsorship is in memory of Saul Feldberg, the founder of the Global Furniture Group in Canada and the Teknion Corporation in Israel, who passed away in January of this year at the age of 87. He and his wife, Toby, both Holocaust survivors, escaped war and built a new life together in Toronto, just as Shmaliy is building a new life in Israel.

In Saul Feldberg’s obituary in the Canadian Jewish Times, he is quoted as saying, “I made a vow that if God would help me to attain wealth, then one day I would help Israel and the Jewish people in any way I could.”

In another article, when speaking about the company he built in northern Israel in the mid-1980s, he says, “We are proud that it employs about 300 people, many of them Russian immigrants. We are proud that the refugee kids from yesterday could contribute to a realization of a 2,000-year dream of a Jewish state.”

Shmaliy is honored to be the recipient of the Feldbergs’ support: “I want to continue to move forward, to find interesting work and to be able to make people’s lives better, as the Feldbergs are doing for me.”

He ends the interview in his trademark upbeat manner, “We need to stay united, as a people and as a nation, and to give our all to supporting our country.” ■

LEONID SHMALIY, 26 FROM DONETSK, UKRAINE TO KARMIEL, 2014

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