On July 3, in the square of the National Institutions complex in the center of Jerusalem, a special ceremony was held in honor of 75 teacher emissaries who are about to leave their homes and go on shlichut throughout the world, under the auspices of the World Zionist Education Department.
Among the shlichim who will soon be leaving Israel, one can find a shlicha (female emissary) from Nir Itzhak and one from Shaar HaNegev who were forced to evacuate their homes and communities in the wake of the events of October 7. For them, this is an opportunity to present to the world what happened in Israel from up close.
Yaakov Hagoel, head of the World Zionist Organization, members of the Histadrut Administration, the Minister of Aliyah and Integration, Ofir Sofer, and the Minister of Diaspora and Antisemitism, Amichai Chikli, were present at the event.
As part of this evening, the “Wall of Hope,” in which 4,000 students from 30 Jewish schools worldwide participated in its construction, was presented. In the framework of this project, kits were sent for designing the stones of the Kotel with the word, “Tikva” (Hope). The students designed and built the Wall of Hope in their schools as a prayer for hope for the Jewish people and the State of Israel. The participants in this evening will be able to add a stone of their own to the Wall of Hope. The Wall of Hope project was established because the city of Jerusalem is the symbol of hope that beats in the hearts of the Jewish nation throughout the generations.
Yaakov Hagoel, head of the World Zionist Organization: “The educational emissaries of WZO to the Jewish communities in the world carry on their shoulders a big responsibility – the design of identity and the continuation of the Jewish nation. They are the ambassadors of the entire Jewish people. Towards their departure on shlichut, I have blessed them with success in their important mission and in raising the foundation of the Zionist idea and strengthening the importance of Aliya to Eretz Yisrael. ‘Everywhere I go, I go to the Land of Israel. Here is our home. Here is our heart!”
“There is a rare opportunity davka (precisely) during the war to go on shlichut,” said Roi Abecassis, the head of the Education Department of the World Zionist Organization. “Since October 7, the Jews of the Diaspora and those of the State of Israel are becoming closer. Many Jews want to connect to Israel now, and the emissaries are the most authentic representation of this connection.”