Day 30  5 Nov 2023

The artillery fire continues throughout the day and night and there has been a notable increase of jet fighter plane activity.  We are starting to get reports of the death of IDF soldiers as they are beginning their ground attack.

We continue to receive requests for help and we are filling them as fast as we can. Hot meals have been delivered, shopping trips have been made for the day and it’s time to take my boots off.

Not all requests are for food or clothing. We had a request if we could stop by a home and feed their cats, since that are not there. My wife is an animal lover, so we have made two trips so far to feed their pets.

We were asked if we could clean a house of one of our police officers. There are other police officers staying with them while his wife and family are out of town, so we will be more than happy to give back to those who put their lives on the line for us. We will be there to clean it today.

We have also been asked if we can wash clothes for our soldiers. Not only will we wash and dry them but we will open our shower to them and try to have something good to eat as well. Most of the soldiers are old enough to be my sons and some are young enough to be my grandsons. We look forward to helping them.

This week we have ordered 150 hot meals for Shabbat. We are excited about this because on Friday afternoon they will be ready for delivery. The meals are first class and they will be a treat for those who receive them. If we find more are needed, then next week we will increase the amount we order.

I was once a Dining Facility Manager (Mess Sargent) in the Army. They used to say “the Army moves on their stomachs, not their feet”. Sad to report the IDF does not have the same slogan. It is not uncommon for families to take hot food to they son’s and daughters and the rest of the soldiers in their platoon. We will be providing breakfast for one platoon tomorrow. It will bring back old memories of getting up early, baking fresh bread and preparing for their meals.

These kids, and I say kids because most of them are my son’s age or younger. They put their lives on the line, they use their bodies as a human shields to protect me and every citizen here in Sderot; a hot meal is such a small gesture to say “Thank You”.

All we do is made possible by your love and caring support. There are no words that can fully express my gratitude to you for that. The only words I have are THANK YOU!  and they fall incredibly short.

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