Yom ha-Zikaron observance includes remarks by Israeli soldier/educator

On May 10, approximately 75 people gathered in the courtyard outside the Sandra Bornstein Holocaust Education Resource Center at the Dwares JCC in Providence to observe Yom ha-Zikaron (Day of Remembrance for the Fallen Soldiers of Israel and Victims of Terrorism).

A ceremony was led in Hebrew and English by Gilor Meshulam, Israeli emissary (shaliach) for the Jewish Alliance of Greater Rhode Island, and Johanna Fleisher, vice president of (401)j. The keynote speaker for the evening was Maj. Amichai Chikli, president and founder of the Tavor Pre-Military Academy, 

During his speech, Chikli told a story of bravery –  the bravery of a friend who sacrificed himself for the safety of his squad during the war that resulted from the kidnapping of three Israelis along the Lebanese border. He noted that after this war, a governmental committee was commissioned to determine what could be learned from the war. It determined that the collectivist attitude that upheld the army was fading. Ultimately, Chikli said, the biggest threat to Zionism is not physical, but ideological.

“In this era of assimilation and loss of identity, the idea of the Jewish state is under fierce attack,” he said. “We of the Jewish nation do not have the luxury to stand on the sideline.”

Other speakers included Rabbi Barry Dolinger, of Temple Beth Sholom; Adam Tilove, head of the Jewish Community Day School of Rhode Island; and Ben Gladstone of Brown Students for Israel. Bentsion Taube, Ronni Bentsion, and Mike Fink, professor at RISD, recited prayers.

A question-and-answer session followed Chikli’s speech and a blessing of the IDF soldiers.

ARIEL BROTHMAN is a freelance writer who lives in Wrentham, Massachusetts.