Straight from Israel

According to the Oxford Dictionary, resilience means “adapting and moving forward positively.” In Israel, where most people know someone who has served in the IDF and been wounded or killed, there is a profound commitment to preserving and sharing these stories to aid in the healing process for both the veterans and the Israeli people. Says Sara Cannon, member of the Jewish National Fund-USA National Women for Israel executive board and a donor to Ammunition Hill, an Israeli Heritage Site that documents and remembers the Six-day war, “I hope that teaching others about the strength, bravery, and commitment our Jewish soldiers have shown throughout history can give people purpose and strength to get through all of the challenges they are facing today and tomorrow.”

Israel’s Society for the Preservation of Israel Heritage Sites (SPIHS), in partnership with Jewish National Fund-USA is pairing the storytelling of Israel’s difficult past with a multitude of meaningful programs that help Israelis young and old learn about their history, process trauma and gain strength from shared experiences. SPIHS restores and preserves Israel’s history and offers ongoing Zionist education. It oversees more than 180 heritage sites around the country where visitors learn about Israel’s “Pathway to Independence.” Noa Gefen, Executive Vice Chairman of SPIHS believes, “giving the injured a voice to inspire thousands of young hearts is the epitome of resilience."

Ammunition Hill, the site of one of the most pivotal battles of the Six-Day War, is a sacred landmark that tells the story of the Israeli people, their struggles and triumphs. It inspires pride, strengthens identity and ensures that future generations understand the sacrifices that made the modern State of Israel possible.

Located on the slope of Mount Scopus, Ammunition Hill has created “Adopt a Jerusalem Liberator – The Veterans Project” just for this purpose. This program honors veterans of Israel’s Six-Day War and gives them an opportunity to share their stories with high schoolers in Israel.  This nationwide program pairs Israeli high school classes with a veteran from one of the three brigades that liberated Jerusalem during the Six-Day War. Through this special connection, veterans share their memories, tell their stories, and in a sense adopt the classroom for a year. Together, the veterans and students create a meaningful project commemorating their shared experience: a film, essay, or photo album. All projects are being preserved in the Ammunition Hill archives and made available for the public to view, ensuring that the stories of courage and sacrifice continue to inspire generations to come.

Alon Wald, Director of Operations at Ammunition Hill and son of a soldier killed liberating Jerusalem, says, “"Adopt a Liberator" is one of the most meaningful initiatives we have come up with. We are losing veterans on a yearly basis and now is the time we need to contact them and acknowledge their deeds and give them voice. This is an incredible opportunity for students to learn history and ask questions to people who have lived it and learn about their lives after their service and how they’ve evolved. At the end of the project the students all come to Ammunition Hill with their families to present their projects.”

Seventeen high school classes from the North to the South have worked all year with a local veteran and have now completed their projects. Four more classes are now participating. Thousands have been engaged as the students involve their families, share with other schoolmates, and the veterans’ families join in the conversations. More schools are in talks about getting scholarships from Jewish National Fund-USA donors to implement this initiative. Six of the movies created by the students are being translated to English by Jewish National Fund-USA, so that a wider audience can engage with this important content. There is even consideration of expanding the program to the United States, as veterans of the Six-Day war are known to live in Baltimore and Florida.

Tragically, three liberators were kidnapped from Kibbutzim and killed by Hamas. Students “adopted” the families of these heroes, providing love and support.

Ammunition Hill’s Wall of Honor is a powerful tribute to Jewish soldiers from around the world who have served in defense of others. Each plaque on the Wall of Honor bears the soldier’s name, country, branch, rank, and dates of service, a lasting testament to their heroism and courage.

At the entrance to the museum, a large plaque honors and remembers the 13,000 German Jewish soldiers who fought and died for Germany during World War I. Because this is a little-known story in Jewish history, Sara Cannon and her family decided to have this plaque created to become part of Israel’s collective “memory base.” As she says, “Remembering and honoring our Jewish past is what we do as a people. I didn’t want their sacrifices and bravery to be forgotten.”

The March & Salute annual event is another SPIHS program that encourages storytelling to move toward resilience and healing. This annual event honors soldiers injured in Israel’s wars - especially the most recent one on October 7.

This past December, 21,000 people — schoolchildren, seniors, families, and volunteers — stood in the Israeli heat and took part in hikes held simultaneously at 16 locations across the country. Each location represented strength, heroism, and sometimes tragedy in Israel’s national story: places like Kibbutz Re’im in the Gaza Envelope (near the Nova site), Ammunition Hill in Jerusalem, Tel Hai and Kiryat Shmona in the Upper Galilee, and many more. Along the way, participants met injured soldiers stationed at key points, who shared their personal stories of courage, challenge, and resilience.

One of those heroes was Eitan, who was injured in the First Lebanon War in 1982. He shakes uncontrollably due to intense neurological damage. Eitan sat on a plastic chair, with a group of teens gathered at his feet. They listened raptly as he told his story, the shaking in his voice and body intensifying as he spoke about being shot by a sniper and the pain of losing his friends.

Afterwards, the kids asked questions: “Were you scared?” “Did the last war trigger your fears?” “Do you have any regrets?” It was his answer to the last question that left them stunned: “I regret having to kill people,” he said. “But they were your enemy!” a girl exclaimed. “I was protecting my home. Yes, I would do it again. But I regret that I was ever in a position where I had to take another human life.” The group fell silent, processing his words, grappling with the complexity of his reality. Reflects Geffen, “In that moment, I realized just how essential this event truly is — giving kids the opportunity to meet these real-life heroes — face-to-face, to hear their stories, and to understand that things are not always black and white.”

As for Eitan’s participation during the March and Salute event, his response to the experience was unequivocal.  “I’ve told my story countless times over the past 30 years,” he said. “But ‘March and Salute’ is one of the only times I really meet the next generation at eye level — and see in their eyes that they truly get it. Here, my voice is really heard. Thank you for giving me that.”

Says Geffen, “I am so proud of the heroes, especially those only starting to process their injuries from the October 7 War, who sat in the heat, sharing their memories again and again. And proud of our JNF-USA family, whose support makes our resilience program like this one possible.”

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Written by Lyn Buzen, Vice Chair – Women for Israel Newsletter, Chair – Long Island Board of Directors

Written by Roni Wolk, Chair of Women for Israel newsletter, member of National WFI Executive Board, Chair of LOTEM and past Chair of Atlanta WFI