Operation Appreciation at Rambam Mesivta HS
The attacks on 9/11 were traced back directly to Afghanistan. It was there that Osama Bin Ladin and Al Qaida had set up training and operations camps and facilities under the protection of the Taliban government. As a result, the U.S. began military operations against the Taliban and Al Qaida in October of 2001.
For a variety of reasons the media and, hence, the public have grown weary of hearing about the conflict and the conflict itself. But the reality is that 100,000 U.S. Troops are in Afghanistan engaging the enemies of the U.S. 7,000 miles away. This allows us to go about our daily lives without much thought of the enemies who mean all of us harm.
We at Rambam Mesivta feel that as Jews and as Americans it is incumbent upon us to show our gratitude to the men and women who serve in Afghanistan protecting us. Consequently, for the past few years we have been sending them packages. The soldiers know we are Orthodox Jews by virtue of the letter I put in the packages and the special framed Mishabeyrach for U.S. soldiers written by the OU. They greatly appreciated all the items we sent, including my letter and the special tefillah.
This past year we adopted a unit of the Iowa National Guard commanded by 1st Lt. Jacob Miller. The platoon was stationed in Eastern Afghanistan in a remote position. Lt. Miller and his men were overwhelmed with appreciation when they received 19 boxes containing over 300 pounds of items from Rambam students. This past Veterans Day, Lt. Miller and his wife, Stacy, were flown in from Iowa to meet the Rambam students, visiting New York for the first time in their lives!
Lt. Miller and Stacy received a standing ovation at Rambam Mesivta’s Annual Veterans Day Assembly. Lt. Miller spoke of his service in Afghanistan, the responsibilities of command, the day to day routines, the difficulties of being away from family and the sense of patriotism and commitment that the soldiers have. He also spoke of how much of an impact the Rambam students’ packages had on the soldiers’ morale and well being. It was an experience that neither the students nor Lt. Miller and his wife will soon forget!
