40 | JANUARY 25 • 2024 

living in hotels. Listening to 
their experiences was import-
ant for both the Israelis and 
Americans.
“We gave them strength 
and hugs. They couldn’t 
believe that we came,” Morris 
said. “They were so apprecia-
tive. They didn’t realize how 
affected Americans were.”
Dr. Adina Shmidman, 
director of the OU’s Women’s 
Initiative, who led the mis-
sion, said, “The women of 
Israel led us into their hearts 
and spaces. They had been 
feeling so isolated.”
The OU group was espe-
cially grateful to help eight 
young women and their fam-
ilies commemorate their bas 
mitzvahs that were canceled 
due to the Hamas attack. The 
OU women leaders joined 
volunteer efforts to help sol-
diers — providing and pack-
ing items requested by their 
battalions — warm sweat-
shirts for those stationed in 
cold regions and special items 
for women soldiers. They 
prayed together, baked chal-
lahs with them and served 
meals. 

PROUD IDF MOM
Nadel, the mother of two 
IDF soldiers, said, “I am 
incredibly proud of all our 
children. They are engag-
ing in an activity that our 
great-grandparents could have 
only dreamed of — protecting 
our homeland … To have two 
children in the army, to have 
all of our children here in the 
army, means to be in a con-
stant state of prayer that each 
and every one of them returns 
home speedily and safely.
“There was a moment that 
captured the import of the 
mission for me,” Nadel said. 
“We were on an army base 

in the South, a communica-
tion command center that 
had been at the epicenter of 
the battle on Oct. 7. Many 
of the soldiers there, young 
women, were survivors of that 
day. As we distributed cards 
of encouragement that had 
been written by our commu-
nity members, one of these 
young soldiers began to cry. 
‘I thought,’ she said, ‘you had 
forgotten us.’ 

“Her comment taught me 
that even the seemingly small 
gestures — letters, WhatsApp 
check-in notes and batches 
of chocolate chip cookies — 
serve as sources of encour-
agement and strength,” Nadel 
said. “It also reminded me of 
our obligation to bear witness 
to the stories of survival we 
had been told as well as salute 
the resilience of our people 
who, time and again, rise up 
in the face of tragedy to fight 
the battles that need to be 
fought, and then rebuild.” 

According to Shmidman, 
the OU group remains in con-

tact with several communities 
they visited on their mission. 
The women leaders have con-
tinued to collect donations 
and help with programs in 
Israel, as well as hosting one 
of the Israeli women they met 
during the mission.
“This trip was very pow-
erful and transformative,” 
Morris said. “It reminded us 
that Israelis need to feel our 
support. They do not want to 
be forgotten as they continue 
to deal with the ramifications 
of the war on a daily basis, 
so that Jews everywhere can 
have a homeland to come 
back to.”
She urged American Jews to 
continue outreach to support 
Israelis. “We have found that 
even our phone calls, emails, 
WhatsApp messages to our 
family and friends in Israel, 
and letters to the soldiers and 
people of Israel are so sup-
portive and meaningful.” 
To view a video about the 
OU mission, ouwomen.org/
missionreflection/. 
 

Ariella Nadel 
and Adina 
Morris, both of 
Young Israel of 
Southfield, with 
gifts for bas mitz-
vah girls in Israel.

continued from page 38

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