The Content Jedi Blog

To commemorate the one year anniversary of October 7, I am releasing a series of blogs throughout the month that capture my April Jewish National Fund volunteer mission to Israel.

There are still over 100 hostages in Gaza, and it's day 374 of their captivity.

These first appeared on Facebook.

April 16

Kibbutz Shalaveem

 A kibbutz is a type of collective community in Israel, traditionally based on agriculture, though many have diversified into other industries. 

The term "kibbutz" comes from the Hebrew word meaning "gathering" or "collective," and the first kibbutzim started in Israel before it became a nation. 

The residents of most kibbutzim, especially along the Gaza Envelope, are peaceniks and were known to not only employ Gazans but also assist them with everyday activities, like driving them to doctor appointments and helping them with grocery

                              Ori, Noam, and Hillel 

shopping. That relationship was totally fractured after October 7, as many of the same Gazans participated in the massacre.

Compared to the massive casualties of Be’eri, Kfar Aza, Nir Oz, Nahal Oz, and Re’im, Kibbutz Shalaveem was largely spared.
A Kibbutz is only as good as the people running it. In wartime, resources are limited, and they can use all the help they can get. Ori, Noam, and Hillel, owners of Kibbutz Shalaveem, know this all too well. Ori and Noam are active reservists, Noam just returning home from 172 days on the front. IDF soldiers are the baddest MFers on the planet, but even the baddest of MFers need to pause for a hand-cooked meal. And so we spent the day grilling chicken ( a lot of chicken) then packed meals with thank you notes, and delivered them to a base.

The Base

These young men and women don't get much R&R here, and the "accommodations" aren't what I'd call glamorous. 

These soldiers, who are fighting for me and my children and for Jews worldwide thanked us. I'll say it again: they THANKED us. I told them, "You'll win the war against Hamas, but I am going to win this battle of thank you's. You are our heroes. Todah rabah (thank you very much) a thousand times."

Weary, tired, and stressed, the soldiers—many of whom are young enough to be my kids—could not have been more welcoming as we ate a quick lunch together.  

And then just like that, they returned to their posts or back into Gaza.


I didn't use the soldiers' real names for security reasons.

About the Author, David Telisman

I am a Writer and Content Creator, and I work with businesses to inspire their customers to buy from them. I believe that my clients deserve to feel proud of how their content marketing looks and what it says, and I deliver by providing expert copywriting and marketing solutions.

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