Jewish troops posted in Kuwait will have something to smile about this Purim. An ocean away, in the Golden State of California, hundreds of Jewish schoolchildren have prepared food packages and letters for them, in honor of this joyous festival.
Representing Chabad’s thirty schools across the West Coast, in their salute to the U.S. armed forces, children from Mission Viejo, Huntington Beach, LA and Cypress, wrapped the packages and wrote letters to the soldiers stationed in the Middle East, wishing them a Happy Purim and a safe return home.
According to Lt. Colonel, Rabbi Mitch Ackerson, “many of the Jewish men and women serving in the military are convinced that the Jewish community in the United States is unaware of the Jewish population in the military.” A veteran of the Gulf War, Ackerson will be reading the Megillah for Jewish soldiers this Purim. “The support and recognition by Chabad of the West Coast, is extremely heartening and meaningful for our soldiers,” he says.
Rabbi Zalman Marcus, director of Chabad of Mission Viejo, where seventy-five Hebrew-school students participated in the project, says the project went a long way in making children aware of the dedication of U.S. soldiers in protecting their security and liberty. “Parents appreciated the message of sharing and Ahavat Yisrael behind this project,” he observes. Students at Hebrew Academy of Huntington Beach sent emails to their fellow Jews in Kuwait, and fourth grade girls at Bais Chaya Mushka school of Los Angeles prepared the gift packages, all of which were sent to the Baltimore U.S. military base, from where they were airlifted to Kuwait.
“The children learn from the teachings of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, to share light, love and strength with our brothers and sisters serving in the military. These men and women stand shoulder-to-shoulder with fellow countrymen of all faiths in defense of the beautiful freedom our United State of America affords us all,” says Rabbi Baruch Shlomo Cunin, director of Chabad of the West Coast.
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