Urgent Request for Chabad of Kiryat Shemona

PLEASE FORWARD TO AS MANY PEOPLE AS POSSIBLE.



 Tisha B'av night / August 2, 2006
 Kiryat Shemona, Israel

Dear friend,


My name is Yoel Schmidt. I live in Brooklyn, New York
but I now have the privilege of corresponding with you
from Beis Chabad / Chabad house at Chabad of Kiryat
Shemona on the Israeli/Lebanese border.

 For three weeks already Northern Israel has been, and
continues to be, bombarded by hundreds of rockets a
day and as of today more rockets have fallen on the
region than during any other day in this conflict. And
while the entire area has been affected no city has
been at the receiving end of more rockets than Kiryat
Shemona.

Tonight was the first time in the fourteen year
history of Chabad of Kiryat Shemonah that there was no
minyan for the reading of Eichah. In fact there were
only five of us. It is simply too dangerous to venture
out of the bomb shelters. As I write to you now the
air raid siren has been sounding on and off for hours
now and I can hear the deafening explosions of
Katyusha rockets landing around us and  the return
fire of Israeli artillery. It is non-stop, at least
one every ten seconds. So far during this conflict
Kiryat Shemona was hit by over 400 rockets.

In the past hour two Katyusha rockets have landed
within a mile of here.

This place is a war zone. It is not by the front
lines, it is the front lines.

 Over half of Kiryat Shemona's residents have fled for
safer parts of the country. Those that haven't fled
have been holed up in bomb shelters day in day out 24
hours a day for three weeks now. Only one store is
open and only for two hours a day.  The economy here
has not slowed down. It has disintegrated. All other
stores are closed. All banks are closed. All factories
are closed. And all the people are out of work.

 People have neither the money for food nor the
wherewithal or capability to procure it. You can only
imagine that if they’re not willing to leave the
shelters to hear Eichah on Tisha B'av night then
surely they won't leave to purchase food and supplies
at the only store that is – barely – open.

 Enter the heroes of Chabad of Kiryat Shemona. Rabbi
Yigal Tzipori and two brave students from Kfar Chabad
daily put their lives in danger so that others may
eat. Over 4,800 sandwiches and meals are prepared by
their soup kitchen daily.

In addition Chabad distributes crates of diapers and
basic necessities to those in need and provides toys
and games for the thousands of children still stuck in
shelters.. These supplies are very much in demand and
are very costly.

Last but not least Chabad daily treks out to the IDF
artillery units that ring this city and provide them
with sandwiches, tehilims, and lay tefilin to those
who desire. Words cannot describe how much the
soldiers appreciate the caring and love shown to them
by these brave people of Chabad who come to visit them
on the front lines.

Friends, Chabad cannot continue their heroic work
without your support. They are in dire need of
donations. Their daily budget is in excess of $4,000 a
day and opportunities for fundraising here in Kiryat
Shemona are non-exstent. Please contribute what you
can to this worthy cause. Here on the front-lines it
would be greatly appreciated.

Please send your urgently needed tax deductible
contributions to Chabad Lubavitch shluchim office @
816 Eastern Parkway, Brooklyn, New York 11213. Those
who do not need a US tax deduction may send their
contributions to Chabad of Kiryat Shemona, PO Box
2225, Kiryat Shemona, Israel.

Yours truly,

Yoel Schmidt