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OUR
MISSION
The situation in Israel is dire, I’m sure you know as
we see it on the news almost everyday. We watch unflinchingly
as we see the dead, the wounded, the ambulances, the sirens,
the emotional and physical
devastation that terrorism wreaks. The TV screen provides
a safe barrier, we somehow think that what happens in Israel
has no effect on us. What we have to realize however, is that
those attacks are not only aimed at Israeli soldiers, men,
women and children; they are directed towards us, toward every
single Jew. We are one nation, and we share one fate. To save
lives in Israel, to change their destiny, is to save ourselves.
We can positively alter our collective destiny by taking an
active part in alleviating the situation in Israel, by giving
tzedakah.
The
root of the word tzedekah is tzedek, justice. Our
tzedekah, has the incredible power to save lives,
to make things right. Tzedekah also has the incredible
power in a sense to save our own lives, to develop our qualities
of giving, to make us better people. Tzedekah is
a universal quality that can unite our diverse community, which
contains such a wide spectrum of different political and religious
beliefs.
Magen
David Adom is the foremost emergency rescue organization
in Israel. Magen David Adom’s
rescuers are always the first to arrive at the scene of an emergency,
providing medical care to both Jews and Arabs indiscriminately.
In addition to dealing with the saving of lives, however, Magen
David Adom has to struggle with the critical lack
of resources. Approximately 90% of Magen
David Adom’s budget comes from charitable
donations. Individually, we may or may not have a lot to give, but
together our meager contributions can accumulate into a substantial
amount. As teens we are often short on funds, but are fortunately
full of the idealism that can institute real change. We hope that
by uniting our funds to save lives in Israel, we can unite our hearts
as well, building a lasting community.
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