US Ambassador Visits Ezer Mizion

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ambassador-ezer-mizionIn an effort to get his finger on the pulse of the inner workings of Eretz Yisroel, US Ambassador to Israel Mr. James B. Cunningham, visited Ezer Mizion, Israel’s Health Support Organization, which has served Israel’s population since 1979.

The Ambassador was accompanied by his wife and embassy staff, including Ms. Bonnie Gutman, Counselor for Public Affairs, Mr. Leslie Smith, Senior Program Assistant at the embassy’s Public Affairs Office, Mr. Joseph Tordella, Deputy Cultural Affairs Officer, and others. They were escorted by Rabbi Yaakov Asher, Mayor of Bnei Brak, Rabbi Chanoch Zeitbart, Vice Mayor and municipal council members and Rabbi Aaron Dovid Davis, Director of the International Division at Central Agudath Israel in Yerushalayim.
The Ambassador, together with his celebrated entourage, was given an overview of Ezer Mizion’s broad scope of programs and its history. Never had the visitors seen an organization whose services ranged from geriatric care and prophylactic programs to varied undertakings to enhance the lives of the special child; from hi-tech equipment for the speech impaired to professional therapy for the child with cancer. The ambassador was introduced to Ezer Mizion’s International Jewish Bone Marrow Registry which has saved the lives of so many cancer patients around the globe whose only chance of survival had been a bone marrow transplant. The presentation ended with a video of the emotional meeting between a bone marrow donor and an American cancer patient whose lifesaving transplant was facilitated by Ezer Mizion. The audience was brought to tears by the recipient’s expression of thanks to his donor and to Ezer Mizion.

Two Down syndrome girls then presented the Ambassador and his wife with a lovely oil painting and an exquisite piece of jewelry, both created by the girls at Ezer Mizion’s Beit Chana Activity Clubs for Special Needs Children. The ambassador was impressed upon hearing of the atmosphere of love and encouragement engendered by highly trained professionals and devoted volunteers at Beit Chana who have constructed programs enabling these children to grow and flourish and say to the world, “Yes, we can!”

The girls enthusiastically told the guests: “We love coming to Ezer Mizion. This is our home! We have so much fun here. Would you like to see the club?” Ambassadors are very busy people. The schedule was tight and the hour was late. But one word from a very special child caused the hearts of assemblage to melt and the Goddess of Schedules to crumble. “Please?” she asked. The Ambassador and his wife – who were about to leave – turned around and went upstairs to visit the Beit Chana Activity Clubs where they graciously greeted a large group of special needs children together with the professional staff and many volunteers.

The tour of Ezer Mizion was an eye-opener for the Ambassador where he was able to see how Israel’s Jews care for one another. The Ambassador was deeply impressed with Ezer Mizion’s activities and saluted Chananya Chollak, who founded Ezer Mizion with his wife Leah in their modest apartment. “I am grateful for this opportunity to view up close an organization that grew from eight volunteers to 11,000 volunteers who work under a diverse, wide-ranging professional staff.” Jew helping Jew-this is what makes Israel the amazing country that it is.

{Yair Alpert-Matzav.com Israel}


1 COMMENT

  1. Hopefully this will impress upon our ambassador, and he will deliver a message to our president, that jews are not such bad people, and maybe we are worthy after so many years of torment by the western world to be treated with the same dignity and evensidedness as our foes, and maybe the next stop of the ambassador should be Yerushalyim, and learn about our heritage, and see how old our connection is to this land and our capital, he may then relate to the president how ludicrous it is to put palestinian right and jews rights in the yerushalyim in the same equasin, the equasin cant be anything but anti semitisim especially considering that palestinians admit openly that yerushalyim is the third holiest city and this religion is about 1500 years old when our connection is 4000.

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