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I am able to stand beside him
proudly wearing my IDF uniform,
donning the red paratroopers’ beret
on my head and representing to him
that the dream of Israel still lives on
and his son did not die in vain.
Later that evening, I sat with
some friends on the rooftop of
Yeshivat Orayta, where I had stud-
ied before I drafted. The yeshivah is
located in the Old City of Jerusalem
and from the rooftop there is a
magnificent view of the Old City
and the Western Wall. As the sky
grew darker and the country transi-

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24

May 17 • 2018

jn

2168010

Zach Herschfus, 20, is the son of Fern
and Brian Herschfus of Southfield. He is
currently a Lone Soldier serving in the
Paratroopers unit of the Israel Defense
Forces. He is a graduate of Yeshivat
Akiva in Southfield, where he was the
StandWithUs intern from 2013-14.
He also attended Yeshivat Orayta in
Jerusalem and the Bnei David Pre-Military
Academy in Eli, Israel.
He was sworn into the Paratroopers
unit at the Western Wall last June, 50
years to the day the Wall was liberated
by the paratroopers. His mother says he
always dreamed of being an IDF soldier.
Soon after, Zach met with an older rela-
tive visiting Israel who had known Zach’s
great-great-grandfather and namesake,
Yisroel Dov Waxman (Zach’s Hebrew
name is Yisroel Dov). When Waxman was
80, he moved to Israel for his final years.
The relative told Zach this story about
Waxman no one in the family had known
before: When he arrived in Israel, he went
to the IDF recruitment office and said,
“I want to join the army; there must be
something I can do.” They laughed and
told him there was nothing they could
offer a man his age. Still wanting to do
something, he decided he would find a
way to support the soldiers. He ended up
spending hours standing at the bus stops
where the soldiers would return from
base, handing out candy and other treats
and giving them blessings. This story con-
tinues to empower Zach daily as he feels
he is not only living the dream for himself
but also for his namesake.
Zach’s great-grandparents Abraham and
Sarah Cutter dedicated their lives to Israel
and its causes. Abe Cutter was an Israel
Bonds volunteer since its inception and
sold millions of dollars of bonds in his life-
time. During the Six-Day War in June 1967,
Abe secured himself a spot on a cargo
plane to Israel and took Sifrei Torah to the
soldiers on the front lines. On that trip, he
collected bullet shells from the battlefield
and turned them into a menorah that Zach
lights every year on Chanukah.

tioned from Yom Hazikaron to Yom
HaAtzmaut (Israel Independence
Day), I looked out over the Old City,
and the feeling of sadness from what
we have lost started to give way into
the joy for what we have gained.
As we walked through the streets
of the city that night, we danced
and sang together with everyone
around us, friends and strangers,
there were no differences — we were
all together as one. As I experienced
this transition, I thought about how
the succession of these two holidays
represents who we are as a people
and why I chose to be standing
there in uniform.
In the history of the Jewish peo-
ple, we have suffered many atroci-
ties and defeats, but we have always
picked ourselves up and come back
stronger. As a people, when we fall
down we always get back up again
and the way we do that successfully
is when we do it together in unity.
Unity is the strongest weapon the
Jewish people have; that is our super
power. On Yom Hazikaron and Yom
HaAtzmaut, I was able to see this
super power activated so clearly
as everyone across the country set
aside their differences and came
together in sorrow and transitioned
together into pure joy. Although
my mission on Har Herzl was not
one that involved patrols or check-
points, it was definitely my most
meaningful and important mission
yet because I took part in activating
the super power of our nation as we
stood together in unity. •

After advanced training, which included a
35-mile hike in full gear, Herschfus earned his
parachute-with-wings pin and his unit com-
mander gave him his own red paratrooper’s
beret, which was a special honor .