State of Israel
ISRAEL NEEDS OUR HELP
When Israel fought the six day war in 1967 and then the Yom Kippur war of 1973 and all the time between and for years after, the Middletown Jewish community rallied to the side of Israel. We held gatherings at private homes and at Adath Israel where tens of thousands of dollars were raised through pledges to UJA and purchases of State of Israel Bonds.
We did it because we knew if we didn’t come to Israel’s assistance, no one else was going to. We understood that without the support of every Jewish community in America, Israel might not survive.
We made a point to involve our elected officials. We wanted them on Israel’s side. It wasn’t always a certainty where the U.S. State Department stood. In fact it wasn’t until 1973 when the U.S. government supplied Israel with the weapons needed to replace the ones destroyed in the sneak attack by Egypt and Syria on Yom Kippur Day that American support of Israel became 100%.
It was that war that laid the foundation for peace treaties with Egypt and Jordan and a UN sanctioned “arrangement” with Syria. It was that war that led to the removal of the Soviet military presence from the area and began a 40 year period in which the U.S. was the only superpower operating in the Middle East. Regrettably, the Russians are back and that is not good for us or Israel.
Innocent Israelis have become the targets of random attacks by Palestinians. The cost of keeping the nation safe is enormous. Israel needs support from the U.S. government as well as other nations. Unfortunately, we have entered another period where support is in short supply.
We can’t let Israel fend for itself. We need to provide help by donating money to those charities that help Israeli citizens under attack and through investments in State of Israel Bonds. If we do not come to Israel’s aid, who will?
We can also help by contacting our representatives in Congress. That is critically important because without the 100% support of our government, Israel’s enemies are emboldened and no good can come of that. It is not in the United States strategic national interest to have Israel’s position in the Middle East compromised or reduced.
There are many worthwhile organizations like American Friends of Magen David, Hadassah Medical Centers, the Jewish Federation of North America. They are all organizations directly involved in protecting Israeli lives. AIPAC works to keep support of Israel in Congress strong. Although AIPAC is not a charity, it does as much as the other organizations to keep the Israel safe and strong.
Let’s rekindle the spirit and the unity that motivated our giving of years ago. Let’s double or triple our yearend contributions. The survival of Israel and one-half of the world’s Jewish population is at stake.
A list of organizations and their addresses are available below and in the office.
Jewish Charities
Jewish Federations of North America, c/o JFNA Network Communities, 25 Broadway,
Suite 1700, NY, NY 10004
Jewish National Fund, 78 Randall Ave, Rockville Centre, NY 11570
Hadassah, National Processing Center, P.O. Box 97153, Washington, DC 20090-7153
American Friends of Magen David Adom, National Processing Center, P.O. Box 96402, Washington, DC 20090-6402
American Israel Public Affairs Committee, P.O. Box 96727, Washington, DC 20077-7617
State of Israel Bonds-Call Barbara Starr at West Hartford Office (860) 656-2110
Barbara will provide you with forms and other information about the bonds or you may purchase directly via http://www.israelbonds.com in lieu of filling out a form.