Three years after the death of his wife, Esther Zeitz Pollard, Jonathan Pollard planted a vineyard in her memory at Ramat Negev Winery in the Negev, honoring the woman he credits with securing his freedom and bringing him home to Israel.
Standing beneath the desert sun near the Egyptian border on July 29, Pollard joined family and friends in planting grapevines dedicated to Esther Pollard, an ardent Zionist who died in 2023 after a long battle with cancer.
The Esther Pollard Memorial Vineyard was planted through the Wine on the Vine initiative, a program of the Israel Innovation Fund that allows supporters around the world to dedicate grapevines at Ramat Negev Winery in honor or memory of loved ones while supporting Israeli wineries and charitable causes.
The ceremony carried special meaning for Pollard. Esther, who was born in Montreal, regularly studied the Prophets and Psalms while sipping a glass of wine. Curious about the custom, Pollard once asked her why she drank wine while studying.
“So I can taste the words of the prophets,” she replied.
Pollard said the vineyard was a fitting tribute to the woman he first met when they were both 15 years old while studying in Israel. They reconnected decades later after Esther contacted him during his imprisonment. Both had previously been married and divorced before marrying while Pollard was still serving his sentence for spying for Israel.
Pollard, a former U.S. Navy intelligence analyst who spent 30 years in an American prison, credited his freedom to Esther’s dedication. Five years after his release in 2015, he and Esther fulfilled their long-held dream of making aliyah.
“It was she who breathed life into me,” Pollard said. “She taught me one very important lesson that actually kept me alive because the prison I was in was extraordinarily violent. The lesson she taught me was ‘Bashamayim mima’al, ein od’ [There is no power in the heavens above besides God]. She was, in many ways, my Torah.”
After winning his freedom, Esther received devastating news when doctors in New York told her she had only six weeks to live. Instead, aided in part by an innovative therapy, she survived for more than six years. Pollard noted that then-Israeli Ambassador to the United States Ron Dermer personally intervened to help secure funding for her costly medical treatment.
Shortly before her death, Esther introduced Jonathan to Rivka, whom he later married. Rivka and her daughters joined the family in planting the memorial vineyard. Fittingly, the dedication took place on Tu B’Av, the Jewish holiday of love.
Adam Scott Bellos, CEO of the Israel Innovation Fund and founder of the Wine on the Vine initiative, said Esther’s legacy was defined by her unwavering devotion.
“There are many lives that are measured in years, and there are many that are measured in devotion,” Bellos said. “Esther Pollard’s life was measured in devotion.”
He said that while others gave up hope of seeing Pollard freed, Esther never stopped pressing American and Israeli leaders to act.
“For Esther, freedom was not simply opening the door of a prison,” Bellos said. “It was Jonathan walking beneath the sky of Israel, no longer a prisoner or a forgotten man, but a Jew returned to his people.
“Now, in the sacred soil of the land that she fought to bring him home, Esther Pollard’s love will bear fruit and take root and live forever.”
At the conclusion of the ceremony, Bellos unveiled a commemorative, custom-made wine bottle bearing Esther’s portrait, alongside a sign marking the new vineyard planted in her memory.
“Dedicating a vineyard in Esther’s name is a way to taste the fruit of her essence,” Pollard said. “The Wine on the Vine initiative is a beautiful connection to the Land of Israel. I hope others will dedicate grapevines to their loved ones.”
