Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, is less than three weeks away, and The Fellowship is already beginning our special food box distributions so that our elderly beneficiaries in the Holy Land can celebrate the holiday and the rest of the High Holy Days with dignity and stability. During the last two weeks, Fellowship staff have visited Kiryat Malachi and Nof HaGalil, hand-delivering packages filled with essential food along with Rosh Hashanah treats like apples, honey, and grape juice.
93-old Lubov in Nof HaGalil was among the first of many to receive this aid. Living in northern Israel, she has regularly faced threats from the war with Iran and the ongoing conflict with Hezbollah in Lebanon. Though she has a bomb shelter near her home, each trip to it becomes more difficult than the last. As soon as she hears the alarms, she is reminded of those that sounded when she was a little girl during World War II.
Lubov was supposed to start first grade before the war reached Belarus in 1941. Two days later, she and her family fled their village. They didn’t take anything with them but the clothes on their backs. They boarded a train, not knowing where it was headed, as bombs rained down around them. Eventually, they ended up in Stalingrad. When Lubov’s mother became sick, she was taken to a hospital where Lubov wasn’t allowed to see her. During this time, eight-year-old Lubov walked the streets alone, visiting the hospital once a week.
Once her mother was finally released, they stayed with Lubov’s brother for a year. Lubov remembers the meager bread rations they received and the hunger and cold they often endured. When they finally returned to Belarus, they lived with her grandparents. They maintained a kosher home and changed their dishes for Passover. Lubov went on to work in a textile factory and a kindergarten. In 1991, she made aliyah to Israel.
The assistance Lubov receives is a lifeline amid the rising cost of living. And at her age, it is more important than ever that she has access to the food and medicine she needs. She sends her heartfelt thanks to our donors who help support her and let her know that she is not forgotten.
“You crown the year with your bounty, and your carts overflow with abundance” (Psalm 65:11).