As Israel escalated its war against Hamas in Gaza and casualties from the ground operation launched on October 27 began to rise, Israelis – with the help of friends and family from abroad – rallied together in earnest to support IDF soldiers, the families of the hostages, and one another to get through this challenging time.
At the end of October, David and Ronit Zwebner drove me and photographer Liam Forberg to an IDF base near Jerusalem for a heartwarming visit to the Emergency Volunteers Project (EVP), which has partnered with Jewish Federations of North America, Texans on a Mission, and other aid organizations to bring dozens of medical personnel and firefighters to Israel, as well as volunteers who prepare and deliver hot meals to soldiers and bereft families.
EVP was founded in 2009 by Adi Zahavi, its CEO and the Zwebners’ son-in-law. Officially approved by the Israeli government, it holds training sessions in the US and Israel for emergency workers to help in crises ranging from terrorist attacks to natural disasters. “We’ve brought 50 doctors, 40 firefighters, and 110 volunteers to Israel since the start of the war, and they’ve been deployed at hospitals, fire stations, and on our base,” Zahavi says. “So far, we’ve provided over 60,000 meals, from hot dogs and burgers to falafels, to soldiers and citizens of Israel in the south and center of the country.”
Volunteers helping Israel's troops
The volunteers – Jews and non-Jews – prepare kosher meals on base and at mobile kitchens for tens of thousands of soldiers. “We work with all our volunteers, feeding soldiers as much as we can, wherever we can,” says head cook Avishai Goldenberg, adding that the response from the troops has been “amazing. Their appreciation is beyond anything I’ve seen in my life, which makes it so much more fulfilling.”
Ian Brown, an Israeli from Perth, Australia, whose wife, Sharon Landau Brown, is Ronit Zwebner’s sister, felt the need to “do something” after the war broke out. He called Zahavi, who urged him to enlist local volunteers to lend a helping hand.
“Within a week, I had 80 to 90 people in this WhatsApp group, and every day I bring in 10 to 20 volunteers,” Brown says. “As soon as the war started, volunteers flew in from Texas, and within a day and a half there were 20 of them here, ready to start cooking. Some are here for a few weeks at a time, some for the duration. Some are alone, some are husbands and wives. Together we are now preparing about 2,000 falafel sandwiches a day, which we pack into boxes that are then packed onto trucks and sent to where the army tells us.”
Joe Crutchfield from Dallas has volunteered in Israel several times, most recently to cook for Ukrainian refugees. “We sleep here in trailers on the base, and I’m here until mid-November, a total of four weeks, although most of the others are here for two weeks at a time,” he says.
EVP, which is listed as a nonprofit organization in the US, is raising funds to continue to provide the necessary aid, essential services, and nutritious meals for as long as the war rages on. (EVP.org.il)
“What’s really impressive about EVP is how Adi cuts through red tape with his dedication,” Zwebner says. “Yesterday, Ronit and I were in Ashkelon meeting a group of volunteer doctors he brought in to help Barzilai Hospital. That’s besides the firefighters and food makers he has already brought in.”
In his address to the foreign media at the end of October, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu concluded with the words, “May God bless Israel, and may God bless all those who stand with Israel.” To which we can only add: Amen.