Just across the road from the site of the Nova Music Festival, where Hamas terrorists massacred hundreds on Oct. 7, 2023, members of Kibbutz Re’im gathered on Nov. 5 with Jewish National Fund-USA leaders, donors and emergency officials to mark a milestone in rebuilding and resilience.
At a cornerstone ceremony attended by philanthropists Michael and Janet Kass of Tampa, Fla., as well as local dignitaries, Jewish National Fund-USA dedicated the first of eight planned emergency response centers—part of a nationwide effort to strengthen communication and coordination between emergency services in the Gaza Envelope and northern Israel.
The Kass family’s “transformational gift,” as JNF-USA described it, will help ensure that border communities are never again left cut off from critical assistance, as so many were on Oct. 7.
“Bringing all of these organizations together is our way of saving lives,” said Southern Region fire chief Itzik Oz. “Putting the hands of all organizations together is very important. Today, I feel victorious. I feel proud.”
Kibbutz Re’im, one of the hardest-hit communities on Oct. 7, has since become a symbol of recovery. Six residents were murdered, five were abducted, and nine soldiers and police officers were killed defending the kibbutz. Yet remarkably, 90 percent of its displaced members have now returned.
Shachaf Maroodi, a kibbutz member who moved back from Tel Aviv to raise his family, recalled how the community took control of its fate after the massacre.
“We were the first kibbutz to take responsibility for our lives,” he said. “The government and army were not there. In our meetings with JNF, it was the first time someone was willing to listen as we reimagined our lives, layer by layer.”
Before the dedication, visitors toured a large new playground under construction at the heart of the kibbutz. “It’s our Central Park,” Maroodi said. “For our kids to want to return, we need to give them a new playground, with a better feeling.”
‘Partnership that allows us to dream’
Zohar Livne Mizrahi, the secretary-general of the kibbutz, praised its partnership with JNF-USA. “The government allows us to fix what was broken—to do rehab,” she said. “What JNF did was allow us to dream. That is important for our healing.”
Tali Tzour Avner, JNF-USA’s chief Israel officer, said her team has worked for years to strengthen the Gaza Envelope, long before Oct. 7.
“Our goal was always to grow the region,” she said. “After the attacks, we understood the urgent need to support the regional councils and the return of evacuees.”
Michal Uziyahu, mayor of the Eshkol Regional Council, said the new centers represent “radical hope.”
“This is much more than a security plan; it is a spiritual security plan that ensures the deaths were not for nothing,” she said. “Through choosing life and hope, Oct. 7 will be part of our lives, but it won’t define us.”
Philanthropy rooted in Israel
The Kasses, who have been visiting Israel regularly since the 1970s, became deeply involved with JNF-USA about a decade ago. Michael, 83, a retired attorney turned real estate investor, said he was inspired by JNF’s commitment to rebuilding and protecting Israeli communities.
“If you have the means, you have to give,” he told JNS.
Judy recalled that her grandparents “were always talking about Israel.” A visit to Jewish National Fund-USA projects in the Negev Desert, she said, “just touched me. I tell Michael that he has to keep working so we can give more to JNF!”
The Kass family plans to return soon to celebrate additional JNF-USA projects in both the Gaza Envelope and northern Israel.
“This partnership is about life, resilience and unity,” said Tzour Avner. “It ensures that when the next emergency comes—and it will—our communities will be ready, connected and never alone.”
