Shalom from Jerusalem!

This month we were honored to host our active- and reserve-duty soldiers for a special meeting to discuss the specific challenges and traumas which they face as they defend the country – and often handle personal loss and grief – throughout this difficult time. The war has now been going on for over four months – and believing soldiers are no more immune to the effects of war than their peers.

We opened the meeting with time to connect over coffee and cookies, and then I screened one of our videos describing the horrific 1995 terror attack during which I personally lost seven close friends. My testimony allowed me to relate to the soldiers and to share with them the importance of expressing and processing grief, hardship and tragedy as part of the journey towards healing. The honesty, although it caught some of them off-guard, was a powerful tool to connect which all of them ultimately appreciated.

Afterwards, we took them out for lunch at a local chef restaurant called “HaMotzi” which specializes in Middle Eastern fine dining. Our time in the restaurant was an additional wonderful opportunity for connection and fellowship for the team and for the soldiers. Many of them were able to share their personal experiences from their service during the war, which was meaningful for them and for us. We finished the meeting by presenting all of them with a gift card which can be used at a variety of stores throughout Israel.

Overall, the meeting encouraged the soldiers, broke down barriers between them and showed them once again how much they mean to all of us. Here are two of the many messages we received after the meeting:

Thank you so so so much for today and especially for Moran’s involvement. The gift is above and beyond! I so appreciate your support and that you are always available to share and to support us! I don’t know what I would do without your prayers, encouragement and gifts which always hit the nail on the head.

Thank you so much for [HFI’s] support of me and my family throughout the years [of participation in the Threefold Vision] and especially during the last months in which I served in reserve duty!

The latter also added that his wife continued to be amazed by and thankful for the level of practical and emotional support she has felt from the organization as a “reserve wife.”

Thank you for entrusting your offering to Hope for Israel. Your partnership means a great deal to me, my team, and the many people who are blessed by the ministry’s work. May we continue to be a light and a blessing to the people of Israel during this dark and difficult time.

In His Service,

Moran Rosenblit
Founder & Executive Director
Hope for Israel
Jerusalem