The following three posts in series started in response to my readers asking how they could help, get involved, or donate to Israel. They wanted to know how to support Israel’s people and the chayalim (soldiers) in this time of great need. I’ve spent the last three weeks really investigating the following organizations and people: their mission, their effectiveness, their meeting needs directly in different ways.

John and I have donated to certain organizations in the past, only to find out they are bogged down in bureaucracy or that the top officers are taking out huge salaries for themselves. We want our charitable giving to go directly to where it’s most needed. The three individuals or groups I’ve decided to highlight are mostly all volunteer with little to no overhead. I never cease to be amazed at the work individual citizens are doing in this country to help others. It is truly humbling. Everyone I’ve interviewed wants to do even more. Most work full time jobs, have families and volunteer in their “spare time.” Some are active duty reservists or are wives of reservists. They are superheroes.

Before you donate, I ask you to read carefully the next three articles I will be publishing. Look over the organizations, the individuals that run them and the work they are doing. Be prayerful. I know times are hard, but your support can make a world of difference. I thank you in advance-

I first learned about Just One Chesed from a group I belong to on WhatsApp that connects peoples’ needs to volunteers and donation centers. Whenever I called the operations manager, Dani Eisenstock, he responded within a few minutes. All the volunteers at their center are incredibly cheerful and ready to help. A friend of ours in the reserves needed a fire retardant suit, and they had one for him within minutes. These people are incredible and I highly support them and their efforts.

Just One Chesed is an organization that began in 2015. In Hebrew, a chesed is an act of kindness, and Dani Eisenstock, Pinni Rotter and Jerry Latinik, three young American Israelis and neighbors (and army reservists) saw the many needs of the soldiers and decided to address them. Since then, they have brought direct aid to thousands during the COVID pandemic in 2020-2021; the influx of Ukrainian refugees to Israel in 2022; and now, the current war.

The group’s many volunteers are working tirelessly to meet the direct needs of the Israeli soldiers and the Israeli people. Their two central locations, one in Efrat and the other in the Gush, take in requested donations and distribute them immediately, both to the soldiers and to the people in need. At the onset of the war this past October, so many Israelis, Lone Soldiers and expats answered the call to defend the country. Reservists of both sexes and all ages returned to Israel, flying in from all over the world. Over 360,000 people showed up, and the IDF was so overwhelmed that they couldn’t meet the immediate needs of the soldiers. Just One Chesed stepped up to the plate, bringing in everything from army boots and sleeping bags to medic kits, hygiene items, hydration systems, straps for soldiers’ guns, helmets and other tactical gear.

Soldiers, units and bases contact the organization directly to request certain items. “We tend to stay 2-3 weeks ahead of everyone else in meeting the many needs of the soldiers for equipment. We have contacts and suppliers throughout the world. We know someone in New York who knows a person in Toronto who knows a supplier in Nebraska or Pennsylvania… there are so many wild connections.” states Eisenstock. “For example, there was an immediate need for ceramic inserts for bulletproof vests for the soldiers going into Gaza. Much of the reservists’ gear is old and too heavy for long days in battle in the shetach (field) and they required lighter and safer equipment. We were able to procure within days, 8.4 million shekels (over $2 million) worth of gear from private donations and suppliers and army supply stores across North America.”

There is still an urgent need for fire retardant coveralls for the soldiers in tanks and armored transport vehicles, especially in larger sizes.

On a personal note: John and I have a dear friend who is a medic in the reserves. This young father of two with another baby on the way, has spent over four months serving in tanks in the North as well as in Gaza. He is now on leave, and we called Yardi to verify this story. Sure enough. The tank he is assigned to holds a driver, a commander and two other soldiers. Yardi rides piggyback with a paramedic and they ride where 17 rounds of ammunition are usually stored. The four other soldiers each have one pair of army-issued Nomex suits which are old, heavy and cumbersome. They are worn for 12-18 hour shifts at a time and are usually not able to be laundered for two weeks straight. Yardi, our combat medic friend, and the paramedic wear only their regular uniforms as they are not classified as true combat soldiers. To add to the gravity, the tanks and ATVs are prime targets for the rocket propelled grenades (very mobile, portable, shoulder-launched rocket grenades) that Hamas uses. John and I were appalled, and this is just one, personal reason I am writing this article. We want to challenge others to help us raise funds for Just One Chesed to purchase these badly needed fire retardant suits, each one costing only $160.

Most people outside of Israel do not realize that the IDF is actually fighting the war on the land, in the air and at sea on six different fronts simultaneously! These include the Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorists in Gaza as well as the Houthis in Eilat and the Red Sea; Hizbulla on the Lebanese border affecting much of the North and Iranian backed rebels in Syria attacking the Golan Heights. As if this was not enough, there is a huge internal problem. Many soldiers and border patrol are actively fighting terrorism in Jenin, Tulkarm, Qalandiya, Hevron and other hotbeds in Judaea and Samaria (aka the “West Bank”). Stores of weapons, explosives and cash have been found in addition to terror tunnels leading into Israel. Also, within Israel, police and IDF try to fend off and respond to localized terrorist attacks.

In addition to soldiers’ needs, Just One Chesed has provided baby packs- diapers, bottles, strollers, clothes, furniture and toys- to mothers displaced from their communities at a moment’s notice last October. Currently, over 92,000 people, mostly young families, have been evacuated from their communities both in the ‘Gaza Envelope’ and in the North.

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In the last nine months, this amazing organization has been helping the displaced families from the Gaza Envelope, the area that was hardest hit by the 7 October Hamas massacre, missile launches and acts of and terrorism. After long months of living in cramped hotel rooms throughout the country, many families are deciding to move into their own apartments. They are still dealing with uncertainty, PTSD, and war raging alongside their old towns and kibbutzim. Many homes are still uninhabitable. Because of this, they must start over.

Last week, Menachem Katz, who also works with Just One Chesed, heard that the City Tower Hotel in Ramat Gan was doing a complete remodel, so he got the owners to donate all of their furniture to the refugees. He gathered up many volunteers, some on leave from their military service, to pick up the furniture, take it to their warehouse and to begin distributing it as

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Just One Chesed has also been providing events for the families of those suffering from the trauma of the terrorism, having family members kidnapped or killed, or being a wife of a reservist who has been in Gaza for four or more months. They are providing coping workshops, bringing in pro-bono therapists who lead counseling, breathing and stress-relieving classes. They provided specially designed packs of cards for the children to help them deal with their stress on their own level. Providing direct assistance for the families of reserve soldiers also helps pick up the lack of income and other support for those with fathers and husbands away from home for extended periods.

It’s not just physical needs with which Just One Chesed is involved. For example, wives and mothers of hostages and soldiers who have never lit Shabbat candles before were blessed with sets of beautiful silver candlesticks donated by Hazorfim Judaica stores. This started their “Candlestick Project,” giving out pairs of Shabbat candlesticks to women who have never ushered in the Sabbath by blessing and lighting the candles. They can now bring in the holy light of the Sabbath into their homes with silver candlesticks, each in memory of female fallen soldiers – and yes, there are quite a few women who have given their lives.

‘The Tefillin Project’ was launched in memory of IDF soldier, Elkana Viesel (of blessed memory), who lost his life in Gaza, to purchase phylactery boxes used by Jewish men in prayer. The pairs of tefillin have been handed out to all Viesel’s friends serving in Gaza who requested them. Now, Just One Chesed is receiving permission from families of the fallen who wish to have tefillin given to soldiers requesting them in their memory. As of March, 2024, over 100 pair have been distributed.

Just One Chesed in Israel is a non-profit organization with an Israeli amutah (tax exempt status) as well as an American 501C. They are a branch of the greater Just One Chesed Center in Chicago. Here in Israel,they are constantly shifting to meet the needs of the people directly. There is little to no overhead and little to no waste. The group has a talent for assessing the needs of the people and providing them with the immediate resources to receive the right help at the right time. Matching grants from individuals, synagogues, churches or organizations are more than welcomed, as are individual donations at all levels. Volunteers come from within Israel and from all over the world to donate their time and talent. There is an incredible energy throughout the centers – among the community volunteers as well as youth groups, synagogue groups, and other volunteers who are always warmly welcomed.

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You can find out about Just One Chesed and how YOU can get involved by visiting http://www.justonechesed.org/aid4israel. Be sure to visit their site on http://www.chibukim.org. They also have a strong social media presence including on Instagram @justonechesed and @hugsforheroes. For a donation link use https://jocdonors.donorsupport.co/page/FUNSCYYFXDF.

(As of this writing, their Efrat center just suffered from an electrical fire over this past Shabbat. Thanks be to G-d, the sprinkler system was working and the fire was extinguished quickly. Yet there was still extensive smoke damage and there is still no electricity. They have had teams of volunteers working round the clock to salvage, clean and restock as much as they can, and are actually operational again.)