Last week we read Torah portion named “Toldot”, (which is translated, alternatively, as history, legacy, descendants). Regarding this, there is a saying of Jewish sages: “Legacy of righteous are their deeds”. And, as it often happens in the Holy Land, where G-d’s providence is more revealed, we could get a glimpse of how events of the week reflect weekly Torah portion.
Last Thursday night we travelled to Zichron Yakov in order to participate Friday morning in the dedication of a Therapeutic Garden in a new Jewish Elementary school – a beautifully designed space, made possible by donations of many people in the US in the memory of our friend Lori.
While we were still in the US, we shared our dreams and plans of living in Israel with several couples of long-time friends. One of these couples were Lori and George. They loved the Israeli town of Zichron Yakov, a beautiful place on the Mediterranean coast established by baron Rothchild , with many gardens and a lot of history, and they wanted to settle there after making Alyah.
Unfortunately Lori did not live to fulfill her dream. She had gentle, warm, kind and generous nature, and happy and outgoing personality. She also loved nature and animals, especially birds. When she could no longer work because of illness in her profession as occupational therapist helping children, she started to draw and paint, and uncovered a considerable talent, creating, without any prior training, beautiful pictures of nature, birds and animals, pictures full of life, joy, and colors.
After Lori passed away, her husband George was looking to donate money to a fitting cause, reflective of many facets of Lori’s personality – her love for Israel, and love for nature, her kindness, her therapeutic work with children. In the meantime, another couple of good friends, Nechama and Aryeh, made Alyah last year and settled in Zichron Yaakov. They became friendly with many long time residents one of whom told them of the opportunity and need to transform a plain area in the new Jewish elementary school into a more inviting space for which no more government money was available. That is how the Therapeutic Garden came to life, in the memory of Lori – a beautifully designed area with “pergola”, raised beds of flowers, and walls adorned with Lori’s pictures of birds and animals, transposed onto ceramic tiles.
Friday morning we came to the school for the dedication ceremony, The day started with a morning prayer service for Rosh Chodesh (New Month), for which all kids were together in one big room. It was enjoyable to see kids praying together with musical accompaniment, singing together, so free and joyful to be Jewish, as if fulfilling the verse (Psalm 92): “ Planted in the House of Hashem, in the courtyards of our G-d they will flourish”
After the prayer part was over, Lori’s husband George was greeted by school Principal, and he had an opportunity to talk to kids about the values that Lori represented.
After that, we moved to the new garden area for the dedication ceremony.
The whole event was a rare occasion of “Am Ehad” (One people) – Jewish people in Israel and US together – at a time when there are troubling signs of a growing separation between those two parts of Jewish people. But on this day they were together – in the act of kindness and generosity, that came into existence as a legacy of Lori’s life and character.