Moriah honored Israel at the fourth annual Moriah Family Yom Ha’atzmaut Celebration last Thursday evening, May 9, at The Moriah School. This year’s theme was recognizing Israel as a world leader in innovation, technology and first response. The evening was filled with fun activities such as a carnival, arts and crafts, an inflatable obstacle course and of course a lavish Israeli dinner.
A highlight was the fifth grade girls Daglanut dance. The girls put in a lot of effort to prepare, spending time after school practicing and it paid off as they took the stage with confidence. My daughter, Ally Weber, was one of the girls in the dance and she was so proud after the girls’ performance. “It was tough to learn the dance but at the end when we performed well it was all worth it,” Ally said.
Another popular activity was writing a message to the moon. This year, Israel was the smallest country, and only the seventh one, to orbit the moon. The messages were heartfelt, praising Israel’s accomplishments, with many of the messages simply saying, “I love Israel.”
Yael Weintraub, a Moriah parent, came up with the idea a few years ago to have a school-wide program “as an opportunity for the entire school body, children, families and faculty to celebrate our Israel pride together.” This year’s program included videos on Israel’s accomplishments and innovation over the past 71 years. Israel is smaller than New Jersey, surrounded by enemies and constantly under threat for survival, yet it has the second highest number of Nobel Prizes per capita. Israel is also a leader in first response, giving aid to over 140 countries, even those who refuse to recognize the State of Israel. “We celebrate how this small young country has been able to revolutionize the world technology scene and has been a light onto the nations in first response in some of the world’s most dangerous tragedies,” said Weintraub.
Israel boasts the largest number of high-tech startup companies in the world. They are the only country to have a net gain in the number of trees. Israel is a proud leader in medical innovations such as the Oramed, insulin in a pill, and Re-Walk Robotics, a company with the technology that allows paraplegics to be able to walk. Israel has more patents issued in the U.S. than Russia, China and India combined. When one takes a step back and thinks about all of Israel’s accomplishments, one might question all the anti-Zionism and anti-Semitism we are seeing in the world today. Recent events have proven that Israel is still in a precarious position, despite its outstanding achievements.
Therefore, support for Israel is crucial and imperative at this time. As Rabbi Alter, head of school, said, “The event brought our school community together on a day where we celebrate the greatest miracles taking place in our lifetime. For our children, who were born into a world with a developed and thriving State of Israel, it is critical that we educate them about the captivating story of the reestablishment of our homeland. This education takes place throughout the year at Moriah and culminates in celebration on Yom Ha’atzmaut.” This event was definitely a celebration of Israel and filled the children with joy, showing the uncompromising support Moriah has for Israel.
It is with profound thanks to the Moriah parent donors who gave so generously to make the event free and successful. Many people have expressed their gratitude for having a cost-free event like this for all Moriah families. The volunteer committee is a group of women who dedicate a lot of time to make this event successful each year.
By Kellita Weber
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