Reaching Survivors, One Home and One Heart at a Time

Dear Friends,

This month, I (Batya) will mark another year of life. Birthdays have a way of turning our hearts in two directions at once. We look back on the road we have traveled, and we look ahead to how we long to spend the days we still have. This year, as my own birthday draws near, my thoughts keep returning to a group of people who are dear to Barry and me, and who are never far from the work of Vision for Israel: the Holocaust survivors living among us in Israel.

They are growing older now, and every year there are fewer of them. These are men and women who witnessed the very darkest chapter of human history. They lost parents and children and entire worlds, and somehow they carried on, rebuilt, and made their home here in the land of Israel. For as long as they are still with us, we believe they deserve to live their remaining years in dignity, in comfort, and in the certainty that they have not been forgotten.

That is why, in honor of my birthday, I am asking you to join Barry and me in a gift that will outlast any celebration. Instead of flowers or cards, I am asking for your help to care for survivors.

We are expanding our work for Holocaust survivors, and this time we are taking a more personal approach. Rather than offering aid from a distance, we are bringing help directly to their doors. Our team is preparing personal care packages to deliver by hand, through home visits, so that no survivor receives only a parcel, but also the warmth of another human being who sees them and honors them.

Each package is being tailored to the real needs of the people who will receive it. Inside, survivors will find nutritious food chosen to nourish their bodies, along with food supplements to strengthen them and hygiene products to help them care for themselves with dignity. Where a survivor has needs beyond a package, we will do our best to meet those too, offering additional support according to each person’s circumstances. Alongside the deliveries, we are providing vouchers for food and essential personal items, so survivors can also choose some of what they need for themselves.

This new effort will begin in Jerusalem, and in time we intend to expand it to other areas across Israel. Our first goal is to reach several thousand Holocaust survivors in the Jerusalem area, one home and one heart at a time. We have not waited to begin. We have already started gathering supplies and building relationships with the community leaders who know these survivors and work closely with them, so that our help reaches the people who need it most.

Behind every package is a life that has endured what most of us can scarcely imagine. A knock on the door, a warm meal, a bag of groceries chosen with care, a person who stays a while to listen: to a survivor who has spent decades feeling that the world moved on without them, these simple gestures speak louder than any words. They say, you are seen. You are valued. You are not forgotten.

That is the message your gift carries. Your donation will provide the care packages, the vouchers, and everything else we need to reach survivors personally and directly. It will meet practical, tangible needs, and it will remind these precious people that they are still deeply loved.

Would you consider giving today, in honor of my birthday, to bless those whose years are so precious and few? Every gift, of any size, brings us one step closer to a survivor’s door. You can donate HERE and dedicate your gift to “Aid to the Poor”.

There is no better way I can imagine to celebrate another year of life than by helping to protect and honor the lives of those who suffered so much and endured. Thank you for standing with Israel, and with her survivors, in this season.


With love and gratitude,
Batya with Barry