39.0°,
Fair Providing comforts of home to the Israel Defense Forces
Walk-a-thon in Atlantic Beach next Tuesday, July 26
To help soldiers feel more appreciated and connected to the people who value their service in the Israel Defense Forces, A Package From Home, an American and Israeli-based organization, encourages donations of a wide variety of items to be sent to the military servicemen and women.
A Package From Home’s annual walk-a-thon gets under way next Tuesday at the Sunny Atlantic Beach Club, at 2035 Ocean Blvd. in Atlantic Beach, at 10 a.m., and participants will collect provisions and raise funds for and awareness of the group.
“It’s not just about the items,” said Woodsburgh resident Helen Fuchs, the American liaison for the organization, which collects travel-sized toiletries and other items for packages that are sent to the men and women who volunteer to serve in the Israeli army. “The items are great, but it’s about what the items represent.” Fuchs added that the feedback from the soldiers is wonderful. “They’re very moved that people from all over the world appreciate and care about what they’re doing,” she said.
Fuchs and Toby Schwartz, of Woodmere, started the walk-a-thon in 2013, after brainstorming about ways to promote the organization. With the help of Brenda Slochowsky and her mother, Ann, Fuchs and Schwartz collaborate throughout the year, soliciting donations and sorting through the supplies to send to Israel. Both Slochowskys have served as co-chairs of the walk-a-thon.
As of press time, nearly 200 people were expected to register for the July 26 event, Brenda Slochowsky said — about the same number that took part in 2015. The registration fee is $60, which includes a yoga session at 9 a.m., a T-shirt and brunch after the 1.5-mile walk.
There will be drop boxes to collect travel-sized items including toothbrushes and toothpaste, lip balm, medicated Band-Aids, new socks, stick deodorant and baby/medicated powder. Items are collected year-round to meet soldiers’ seasonal needs.
Shira Gilor, A Package From Home’s project manager, who has been involved with the organization for 11 years, said that it has provided 240,000 packages since it was founded 14 years ago. “No help is too little, and every bit helps put the whole thing together,” Gilor said. “We try very hard to squeeze each dollar that comes in, and buy the most we can for the soldiers.”
The focus is on lone and long-term wounded soldiers, she said, although donors have the option to adopt a unit, in which case every soldier in the unit receives a package.
On packing days, Gilor said, volunteers ranging in ages from 8 to 94 meet at the Hanasi Synagogue in Jerusalem, where the supplies are shipped, set up an assembly line and put together the packages. Soldiers arrive throughout the day and speak to the volunteers before leaving with the packages, she said.
Sometimes travelers to Israel take duffel bags packed with supplies with them, and drop them off with Gilor.
Lt. Colonel Tzvika Levy, the IDF’s liaison with A Package From Home, lets Gilor know what the soldiers need depending on their missions and training. Gilor said it costs at least $20 to assemble a typical package.
The spring and summer packages contain short-sleeved men’s undershirts, boxer shorts, towels, sunscreen, socks, candy — specifically Mike and Ike and M&Ms — energy bars, salty snacks and toiletries. The packages include letters of appreciation in Hebrew, English, Russian and Amharic written by children and adults all over the world.
Fuchs, who has been involved with A Package From Home for nearly a decade, first volunteered when she was in Israel on a family trip. Meeting the soldiers at the end of a day of packing had a lasting impact on her. “Their gratitude was palpable,” she said, “and I was very moved by that.”
Go to www.apfhwalk.com to register for the walk-a-thon and for more information about it. To learn more about the organization, go to www.apackagefromhome.org.
