Extinguishing Terror
We can’t help everyone, but everyone can help someone. – Ronald Reagan
On my way back home from Ariel University last Thursday, the driver received a phone call from her husband that his parents have been evacuated from their home in Haifa due to fire approaching their neighborhood. Her husband’s voice was full of sorrow. The home he grew up in was about to be burnt. His wife tried to calm him down by telling him “that there is no need to worry — the fire-fighters are on their way.” And he quickly responded, “What fire-fighters? They are busy extinguishing fires someplace else.”
Only when I made it home was I able to check the internet to see the amount of damage being done around Israel. Thousands of people evacuated, homes destroyed, innocent civilians hurt and being treated for injuries, and up to a billion shekels worth of damage.
Thursday was a vicious attack. Fires were set in all parts of our beautiful country. Israel has worked so hard to plant trees and turn our little desert country green.
I called Mordechai Cohen, the founder of Connections Israel, and together with my non-profit organization pizza2give we set out on a quest to assist all victims who were damaged by the arson attack. We set up on the pizza2give site a way for people to donate clothing and other necessities to the victims. Additionally, we provided pizza to the fire-fighters, IDF soldiers, policemen and the volunteers who worked around the clock to extinguish the fires. My brother Yair is a sergeant in the army’s Search and Rescue Unit, and was among the many amazing people who assisted in putting out the fire.
I am so proud of our wonderful Jewish nation — so many wonderful people who have been working so selflessly in this very hard situation.
We may argue a lot — but that is because, in the end, we are one family. We will always be there for each other, and when one of us is attacked, we all respond.
We are going to continue to do everything to protect ourselves, and assist our fellow brothers in any way possible.
Mordechai Beasley
Owner of Pizza2give