[Posted 2/19/24]

Sending shalom to friends and family far and wide:

As we enter day 137 of the Israel-Hamas war, so many of us are still anguished by what we hear from our dear Israeli friends and family, by what we witness and hear in the news, by the uncertainty and danger we know is felt by the many displaced in Israel, its citizens, the hostages and families of the hostages, and by every one of us who stands with them in this fight for Israel's existence and future.

We've also heard the stories and accounts-- the many emotions, the difficult and uplifting experiences -- lived by the few friends and family who have gone to Israel to volunteer and help the economy. Thank you for your mitzvah (Hebrew for "duty") during this existential time for Israel.

MY FRIEND NILI: I am writing because of Nili Teichman. We met in 1986-87 in our early 20s when she was an shaliach (Hebrew for "representative sent on a mission") for the small but active Jewish community in my hometown Milwaukee Wisconsin.

Nili was at the time a resident of Milwaukee's sister city in Israel, Or Yehuda. She and I bonded during college years when she was an architect student at UW-Milwaukee and I was studying at UW-Madison. We also spent special time kicking it around with a bunch of other crazy kids at the Milwaukee JCC-sponsored Jewish overnight camp, Camp Interlaken (in WI's North Woods) which is still thriving today-- and where Nili's 3 kids have also gone to camp in recent years. Many of us are still close and want to help our camp sister Nili.

THE NEED: Nili's son Etay (23) is off reserve duty; daughter Lishay (25) is in the reserves, airforce intelligence, and her youngest, Nitzan (21) is in the north with an artillery unit. Nili and her kids, however, are asking us to help the "honorary" Teichman family member, Lishay's boyfriend Asaf Gabay.

Asaf, 25, is a commander in the Egoz combat unit, fighting in Gaza. Egoz is an elite commando unit specializing in guerilla warfare, special reconnaissance, and direct action. It is part of the IDF's central command's special forces, 89th brigade.

Asaf is planning to study mechanical engineering at Tel Aviv University once the war ends. Now in these winter months as unit commander, he is eager to secure funding to lock in a supplies order for winter gear for his unit. This is where we can make a difference.

GOAL: So far, Nili and other Israeli friends and family have raised $7,000 USD toward an approximate $14,500-15,000 USD need for outfitting this entire commando unit (80 men).

UPDATE 2/24/24: Nili shared with me today that the $7K purchased tactical winter wearable gear for half the unit of 80; it arrived in Israel a few days ago from their distributor in the Czech Republic (the best price), and Asaf picked it up from her yesterday. Now they need gear for the other half of this unit.

REQUEST: I am hoping we can rally together to raise the remaining $8,000 USD to close the gap by the end of February.

I will collect it through this fund-raising platform, transfer to Nili's bank and she will order the rest of the gear. Asaf and his unit will send us a message and update once they receive the rest of the gear.

Thank you for your interest and support. May we continue to protect and care for one another. Am Yisrael Chai!