Young Israel kids bring their thanks to Biden

Boxes of letters covered a conference room table in the White House last Wednesday as 40 children from the Young Israel of Woodmere — the largest Young Island congregation in the United States — personally delivered 17,000 letters of thanks to the Biden Administration for its support of the Jewish state.

The children discussed with Second Gentleman Douglas Emhoff their connections to Israel. Emhoff offered words of encouragement. They were accompanied on their journey to the White House by YIW Rabbis Shalom Axelrod and Shay Schacter.

Afterward, YIW officials said, “We must take comfort knowing that the times have changed drastically, and that the highest elected officials in the United States are proactively doing everything they can to protect and support our people and our homeland.”

While pro-Israel communities were elated by President Biden’s repeated explicit assurances of support for Israel, there was concern that the administration might be encouraging a “go slow” approach to a Gaza invasion.