As Israel’s war with Hamas in the Gaza Strip nears two years since its outbreak and the number of battle losses painfully continues to rise, 120 orphans—many of them whose fathers fell in combat or terror attacks—were granted “excellence scholarships” as a tribute to their academic achievements over the last year, despite their personal challenges.
The scholarships were awarded by the Chessed Menachem Mendel Fund of Colel Chabad. As Israel’s longest continuously operating charitable organization, founded in 1788 by the Alter Rebbe, Colel Chabad has multiple year-round programs and services designed to assist widows, orphans and their families to address and overcome a variety of practical, emotional and financial challenges.
Throughout the war, the organization has significantly expanded its services in response to growing demand and the reality that many of the soldiers who have fallen in battle were reservists with wives and families left behind.
Y, a mother of one of the children awarded the scholarship for reaching certain markers, said: “These funds mean so much more than financial support. This is a tremendous dose of encouragement and hope for children who have been forced to experience such incredible pain and darkness. The children work hard all year, excited to reach specific goals and accomplishments, and are rewarded for their determination.”
The scholarship award ceremony took place in Jerusalem this week with the attendance of former Sephardi Chief Rabbi of Israel Shlomo Amar, who took part in distributing the scholarship grants and speaking with the children and families. Also in attendance were Rabbis Zalman and Efraim Duchman, senior officials in Colel Chabad, who came from New York for the special event.
Rabbi Sholom Duchman, director of Colel Chabad, stated that “these children deserve all the good and kindness that we can possibly give them. The pain and loss they have been forced to experience was, of course, no fault of theirs, and they now have to grow up without the support of a parent who was with them one day and gone the next. The last thing these children should have to worry about is how to afford their education, so we hope and pray that these scholarships will help them continue on a path of excellence, and allow them to be sources of pride to their families and communities.”
A, whose husband fell in battle in Gaza, and is the mother to a large family, said: “As a widow, I know that my husband was not just my partner but shared everything I loved in life. For our children, their father was life itself, and his loss remains painful for me and for them each and every day. My greatest prayer and hope is that these children will be able to bring his memory greater comfort through their success. We are so grateful to those at Colel Chabad who recognized this need and chose to support us in this special way.”
