View this email in your browser 

Good Wednesday morning. Today is Yom HaZikaron, Israel’s Memorial Day.

In today’s edition of Your Daily Phil, we reflect on this year’s Yom HaZikaron in an Israel that is still at war and facing growing internal turmoil, and interview Rabbi Kenneth Brander, the head of the Ohr Torah Stone network, about how 18 months of war are affecting Israel’s religious Zionist community. We cover the IDF Widows and Orphans Organization’s Yom HaZikaron ceremony last night in Jerusalem, and spotlight how music has become a part of many Yom HaZikaron events. We feature an opinion piece by Daniel Goldman and Gila Tolub about the role funders can play in supporting the latest innovations in mental health care in Israel, and one by Tamar Kosky Lazarus about a positive aspect of the loss of USAID as a funding resource. Also in this newsletter: Yael Braudo-Bahat, Itay Shabi and Rabbi Alexander Kogan.

Yom HaZikaron, Israel’s Memorial Day, is inherently a political day. Remembering and honoring those who were killed defending the country and in terror attacks carries with it a reflection on the policies, strategies and actions that led to those deaths and if and how they are preventing future ones. There are years when those deliberations are in the background, and there are years when they are in the forefront — and this year they are again at the forefront, writes eJewishPhilanthropy Managing Editor Judah Ari Gross.

In some cases, these political debates have been overt: A mob attacked a Reform synagogue in the central Israeli town of Raanana because it screened a controversial joint Israeli-Palestinian memorial service; protesters demanded that a Haredi minister, Yitzchak Goldknopf, refrain from speaking at a memorial service for fallen soldiers in the southern town of Kiryat Gat because of his opposition to Haredi military enlistment; the protests in Israel against the ongoing war in Gaza over questions of its utility; and the posters seen around the country with a letter missing from the word “independence” to show that without the return of the 59 hostages still in Gaza, Independence Day cannot be fully celebrated tomorrow.

In other cases, these political debates are more subtle. In the speeches at the official Western Wall ceremony marking the start of Yom HaZikaron last night, Israeli President Isaac Herzog reiterated his message from last week’s Yom HaShoah, calling for unity and reconciliation and decrying those who divide Israeli society. “This year, perhaps more than ever, the siren’s sound is also a true alarm, commanding us: Unite and come together. Do not tear apart from within. Do not destroy our home,” Herzog said.

IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir stressed the need for all Israelis to bear the burden of military service — an apparent but unstated reference to the discussions about Haredi exemptions. “The Israel Defense Forces, a people’s army, must meet its tasks, and at this time, more than ever, we need everyone,” he said. “This is an operational necessity, and at the same time, a national need for equality and singularity of destiny.”

In his address, Zamir listed soldiers who were killed while answering “the call” to defend the state. He highlighted two U.S.-born “lone soldiers,” who moved to Israel without their families to serve in the military, and fell in battle. 

“Max was born and raised in Los Angeles. When he was 23, he came to Israel with Taglit. When he visited Mt. Herzl, he was moved standing at the grave of lone soldier Michael Levin, may his memory be a blessing. He decided in his heart to return to Israel and enlist in the IDF. He made aliyah alone and didn't give up even when they told him he couldn't serve in the army,” Zamir said. “In 2014, during Operation Protective Edge, Max was killed in the bitter battles in Shuja'iyya. His relatives feared that only a few people would come to his funeral, but the call went out: More than 30,000 people came to Mt. Herzl to pay him final respects.”

But while these political debates may mark this year’s commemorations, Yom HaZikaron is also a day of communal, apolitical traditions. It is a day to remember and honor the 25,420 soldiers and civilians who have been killed for it in war and terror attacks since 1860 — 395 more than last year, 319 fallen soldiers and 76 civilians. This year, Yom HaZikaron is also a day to remember and honor — and vow to return — the 59 hostages still being held captive in Gaza. 

The holiday begins at 8 p.m. with a one-minute siren, and another is heard for two minutes the following morning at 11 a.m — the starting points of official and community memorial services across the country. Israeli schoolchildren wear white. Masses of people flock to the country’s cemeteries to stand by their friends and loved ones’ graves, continuing maybe to someone’s home for an intimate, personal memorial.

And then as the day goes on, Israelis somehow make the impossible shift — one that’s even more difficult this year — from collective mourning to collective joy, hanging flags and buying ingredients for the following day’s barbecues. We make that unbearable pivot because it is still worth celebrating that we still do have a state — and that for all its myriad imperfections and challenges, it is free.

MAJA HITIJ/GETTY IMAGES

The massacres in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, were overwhelmingly an attack on kibbutzim, particularly secular ones. But the burden of the war that resulted from those attacks has disproportionately been shouldered by Israel’s “national religious” community, in terms of both the number of casualties and the amount of reserve service that its members have performed over the past 18 months.

To better understand the effects of the past 18 months of war on Israel's national religious community, eJewishPhilanthropy’s Judah Ari Gross spoke with Rabbi Kenneth Brander, the president and rosh yeshiva of Ohr Torah Stone, a moderate religious Zionist network of schools and religious institutions.

Judah Ari Gross: How has the last 18 months of war been affecting Ohr Torah Stone and the wider religious Zionist community? 

Rabbi Kenneth Brander: I mean, Ohr Torah Stone lost 20 students, plus another 38 first-degree family members of [students and faculty]. And that's not dealing with the injuries… And while it is true that Ohr Torah Stone has unfortunately taken heavy losses, I try not to look at it as an Ohr Torah Stone issue because I think every loss is a world unto itself. And I don't like counting the losses, saying, you know, ‘We have more than you’ — everyone loss is an entire world, that's the way we should be looking at it. I also try not to look at this as a religious Zionist challenge. I try to look at this as a people of Israel and State of Israel challenge.

JAG: There is a certain tension there though because you may not want to count how many fallen or injured soldiers are from the religious Zionist community, but the fact that so many have come from that background gives the community a standing to speak on certain issues, particularly related to military enlistment for Haredim.

RKB: I think the religious Zionist community would be doing itself a disservice if we reminded everybody how many fell from our community. I think that people are smart, and I think people recognize it by themselves, and those who do not yet recognize it will recognize it… 

Regarding the Haredi community, it's a personal struggle of mine… I'm upset about it. I think they violate halacha. I think they've made the beit midrash into a ‘city of refuge,’ and I think their Torah is not complete. But I cannot allow myself to make that my cause because I'm not going to accomplish anything. I need to make sure that I inspire our students to be the future leaders of the Jewish people, both in the religious sector and in the public sector, and work on giving them the tools so they are the next leaders in the Knesset, in the courts and in the business world.

Read the full interview here.

AMIR LEVY/GETTY IMAGES

Even as Israel gathers to mourn and remember its fallen, it can’t forget the threats still facing the State of Israel, chief among them the Iranian regime, Yossi Cohen, the president of the Friends of the IDF Widows and Orphans Organization and former head of the Mossad, told some 400 members of Israel’s English-speaking community on Tuesday night at his group’s Yom HaZikaron ceremony in Jerusalem. “The Iranian threat is not just a strategic challenge — it is a moral one. It is a test of our unity, our resilience, and our unwavering determination to defend our people and homeland,” Cohen said, speaking at the capital’s Museum of Tolerance, reports eJewishPhilanthropy’s Judith Sudilovsky from the event. 

‘The entire world is different’: The evening highlighted the personal stories of bereaved family members. Seated on a sofa at the center of the stage, holding hands for support, Sigal Manzuri and Dafna Russo shared their personal stories as they struggle to adjust to a painful new reality. Manzuri lost her two daughters, Roya and Norelle, in the Nova festival massacre, where Norelle’s partner, Amit Cohen, was also killed. The pair were meant to get married this summer. Russo’s husband, Uri, was killed defending Kibbutz Kfar Aza as part of its security team on Oct. 7, the same day her nephew, Netta Epstein, was also murdered there. “I feel like I have been thrown into an unseen journey. It's like you wake up in the morning and the entire world is different. It's like you fall into a very deep black hole and there's no way out, and you keep trying to find a way out,” Manzuri said, speaking to eJP before the ceremony. “I don't want anybody, any other mother in the whole world, to feel what I feel. So first of all, we need to stop the war and we need to bring all the hostages back home.”

Read the full report here.

NOAM MOSKOVITZ/KNESSET SPOKESPERSON

Israelis start Yom HaZikaron, their day to honor those killed in wars or in terror attacks, by standing silently as a siren blares throughout the country. But what do Israelis do after the evening siren? For many, the answer is easy: They sing. This year, Galgalatz and Army Radio, a news and talk station run by the IDF, worked on a joint project of reported audio features and songs relating to fallen soldiers and victims of terror. Army Radio shared details of the project with Jewish Insider’s Lahav Harkov before its release to the public planned for this afternoon. 

Living lyrics: One new song, “You’re Out There Traveling,” is based on a poem written by Aharon Danino, brother of Ori Danino, who was kidnapped at the Nova festival on Oct. 7 and murdered soon after. Danino, 25, escaped the music festival in a car, but went back to help save the lives of Maya and Itay Regev and Omer Shemtov, who were taken hostage and later released. The song is performed by "M Hamistaarev," an IDF reservist who goes undercover as a Palestinian and therefore performs with a mask covering his face. Tiktok videos of M singing in Gaza went viral soon after the war began in 2023, and he has since released original music. M went to the shiva for Ori Danino and became friendly with the family, and Danino's brother brought him the poem, which they worked together to set to music.

Read the full story here and sign up for Jewish Insider’s Daily Kickoff here.

DICKCRAFT/GETTY IMAGES

“In the wake of Oct. 7 and the ongoing war, Israel is facing a mental health crisis of historic proportions. The ripple effects of trauma are everywhere, from the frontline to the home front and across all sectors of society. The need for effective trauma care is urgent, but meeting today’s needs is not enough — we must also build the mental health systems of tomorrow. This is where philanthropy has a unique and powerful role to play,” write Gila Tolub and Daniel Goldman in an opinion piece for eJewishPhilanthropy. 

Push the edge of what’s possible: “In times of crisis, many philanthropists understandably prioritize scaling what works — evidence-based treatments like cognitive behavioral therapy or group counseling provided by experienced clinicians. These interventions are essential and should be funded widely, particularly when speed and reach are critical. But if philanthropy limits itself to the ‘tried and true’ alone, we risk freezing progress. Innovation often begins at the margins, with new technologies, untested methods or unfamiliar partnerships that fall outside the scope of government funding or commercial investment. This is where philanthropic capital is most valuable: as flexible, risk-tolerant funding that can nurture early-stage ideas and carry them through to scalable, system-changing solutions.”

Read the full piece here.

ANTONIOSOLARO/GETTY IMAGES

“As humanitarians, we adapt to impossible circumstances. It’s the heart of what we do. Despite mounting odds against us — dwindling funds and fickle media attention amid accelerating climate catastrophes, global conflict and migration — our job is to continue supporting the most vulnerable,” writes Tamar Kosky Lazarus, head of communications and development at IsraAid, in an opinion piece for eJewishPhilanthropy.

An ecosystem-wide reorg: “The human cost of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) closure is staggering. Abruptly ending thousands of life-saving aid programs with no warning and no alternative in place has been harmful to communities around the globe and left the humanitarian world reeling. The wake of the Myanmar earthquake last month is just one example of the crippling effect we are seeing on the international humanitarian aid system. At the same time, the USAID closure may force a desperately needed reset of the humanitarian funding ecosystem… While the enormous grants can fund a full budget, they keep organizations from diversifying and stifle creativity with onerous compliance requirements that favor quantity over sustainability. With the bars blown open, we must not be afraid to step out and use this opportunity to create a more equitable, effective and resilient system.”

Read the full piece here.

Trauma’s Cost: In the Forward, Yael Braudo-Bahat highlights the issue of post-traumatic stress disorder among IDF veterans. “Amid this seemingly endless war in Gaza, it is clear to me and my fellow activists that there is a growing, silent wave of psychological injury that few are willing to name. Soldiers are returning from Gaza with invisible wounds — the psychological pain from having seen or done things with which they cannot fully reckon. Combat medics are traumatized by the horrors they’ve seen while evacuating the wounded and the dead. Young soldiers knocking on doors in Israel to deliver the worst news imaginable — that someone’s beloved child has been killed in combat — are carrying so much pain. These experiences leave deep scars. Not only on the soldiers, but on all of us… This Yom HaZikaron, it’s time to say: It must stop. The devastation of today is already too much. That which we will see in the future, as we see the effects of society-wide PTSD play out, will make things that much worse. We must reach an agreement that brings the hostages home and ends this war. Only then can we begin to heal.” [Forward]

The science city you didn’t know you needed to visit.
Did you know that the World Wide Web was born in Geneva, Switzerland? Indeed, the first version of the Internet cropped up at CERN in 1989. Today the world-renowned center is home to the largest particle accelerator and to the CERN Science Gateway, a must-see hub for science enthusiasts that features hands-on exhibits, immersive virtual reality experiences and live demonstrations.

Be featured: Email us to sponsor content with the eJP readership of your upcoming event, job opening or other communication.

Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics said in its annual report that the country’s population had exceeded 10 million for the first time in its history…

The Trump administration has dismissed multiple members of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Council appointed by former President Joe Biden, including former Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff, former White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain, former Ambassador Susan Rice, former Deputy National Security Advisor Jon Finer, former presidential senior advisor Tom Perez, Mary Zients (an activist and wife of former White House Chief of Staff Jeff Zients) and former Ambassador Alan Solomont…

Harvard University released its long-awaited reports on antisemitism and Islamophobia at the school following pressure from alumni and the Trump administration to do so. Harvard commited to partner with an Israeli university; provide additional resources for the study of Hebrew and Judaic studies; host an annual academic symposium on antisemitism; ask the leadership of Sidechat, a social media app that allows college students to post anonymously, to enforce its content moderation policies; and launch a pilot program in the business school addressing contemporary antisemitism…

A Jewish Child’s Day fundraising event in London with Oct. 7 survivor Itay Shabi raised almost $120,000 (£90k) to rebuild Kibbutz Be’eri’s nursery garden…

The British Jewish News looks at the money that was raised for Jewish causes through the London Marathon, which was held on Sunday…

A heavy police presence appears to have prevented an anti-Israel protest from reaching Jewish areas of Crown Heights, Brooklyn, yesterday…

Conservative commentator David Horowitz, the founder of the David Horowitz Freedom Center, died yesterday at 86…

World War II veteran and avid Mets fan Seymour Weiner, who became a viral sensation after he was honored as the team’s Veteran of the Game during Opening Day 2024, died this week at 98…

LIOR DASKAL/JEWISH AGENCY

Rabbi Alexander Kogan, the father of Rabbi Zvi Kogan, who was killed in a terror attack in Dubai last year, lit a memorial torch today with Jewish Agency Chair Doron Almog outside the organization’s headquarters in Jerusalem at a ceremony honoring victims of terror attacks against Jews abroad.

COURTESY/JEWISH FUNDERS NETWORK

Senior director for U.S. Jewish grantmaking at the Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies, David Rittberg... 

Rabbi, scholar and professor of Jewish studies at Yeshiva University, Saul J. Berman... Founder and CEO of Kansas City-based American Public Square, he was the U.S. ambassador to Portugal during the Obama administration, Allan J. Katz... Brooklyn-based clinical social worker, Marsha S. Rimler... Psychologist, author of several children's books and president of the Saban Family Foundation, Cheryl Saban... Israeli Supreme Court justice until 2021, he was previously attorney general of Israel, Menachem "Meni" Mazuz... Partner in the communications and ad agency GMMB, he served as an advisor to President Obama in both his 2008 and 2012 presidential campaigns, James David (Jim) Margolis... London-based international real estate investor and developer, Zachariasz "Zak" Gertler... Cartoonist and illustrator, best known for his over 100 magazine covers appearing on The New Yorker and other publications, Barry Blitt... Former commissioner at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, she was a U.S. Supreme Court law clerk, Chai R. Feldblum... Professor of sociology at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, she served as president of Jerusalem's Bezalel Academy of Art and Design, Eva Illouz... Senior fellow at Misgav: the Institute for Zionist Strategy and National Security, David M. Weinberg... Borough president of Manhattan, Mark D. Levine... CEO of Newton, Mass.-based Gateways: Access to Jewish Education, focused on children with special educational needs, Tamar Davis... Executive director of federal affairs at General Motors, Eric Feldman... Legislative director for U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), Omri Ceren... Senior policy advisor at Alston & Bird in Was0hington DC, Jonathan Jagoda... Chief communications officer at Business Insider, Ari Isaacman D'Angelo … “Wonder Woman” actress, Gal Gadot … Screen, stage and television actress and singer, Dianna Agron... Founder of Lubin Strategies, he is also an affiliate at Harvard's Berkman Klein Center, Nathaniel (Nate) Lubin... Communications director for Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA), Rachel S. Cohen... Associate in the D.C office of Simpson Thacher & Bartlett, Daniel E. Wolman... Elementary schoolteacher at Broward County Public Schools, Jenna Luks... Reporter at The Wall Street Journal covering consumer behavior and economics, Rachel B. Wolfe... Director for NextGen at the World Jewish Congress, Yonatan (Yoni) Hammerman... Fund manager for a private foundation, Idan Megidish... Global account sales manager for Isotopia Molecular Imaging, Noam Aricha...