Dear OU Community Member,
As you know, over Simchat Torah 5784, in the early hours of the morning, Hamas launched an unprecedented attack on Israel, killing unknown numbers of civilians and soldiers and taking hostages into Gaza.
It is easy to feel helpless being far away in America, as our brothers and sisters are sheltering in place, running to bomb shelters, and being called up to fight. But we can act from afar.
In addition to tefillah and tzedakah, we can ensure that America is there to support Israel in its time of extreme need. We have seen strong support from the U.S. government, both in statements and in action. Many of your senators, members of Congress, and other political officials have made strong statements of support for the Israeli people and the IDF’s actions against Hamas. You can help this effort by ensuring this support remains in place and by sending a message of thanks—hakarat hatov—to elected leaders if they have made a supportive statement.
You can look up your senators and representatives by visiting senate.gov/senators and house.gov/representatives. Search their website and X (Twitter) account for any statements they may have recently made about the situation in Israel.
If their statement has been positive, you can send them a message of sincere appreciation by going to their website and sending them an email. Here is a sample you can copy and paste:
Dear Representative [insert his/her last name],
As a constituent and Jewish American with many friends and family in Israel, I want to thank you sincerely for your statement of support for our ally Israel in its time of need.
As you know, on October 7, as Jews in Israel began celebrating the holiday of Simchat Torah—50 years since the devastating Yom Kippur War—the Iran-backed terror group Hamas launched an unprecedented attack on Israel, killing unknown numbers of civilians and soldiers and taking hostages into Gaza, including American citizens.
Your support gives us hope and encouragement that America will continue to be the best ally Israel has in the world.
Thank you from the bottom of my heart for your words.
Sincerely,
Your Name
Thank you for taking prompt action during this critical time.
Nathan Diament
Executive Director, OU Advocacy
