To see a video recapping the day, click here.
Hi, my name is Netanel Muskat. Yesterday I went to Sderot with a group of NCSYers from Kollel for Yom Chesed. Some of the things we did there were visiting a police station where we saw actual missiles that were fired from gaze to Sderot. Then we were brought to a room where we saw a multi-media presentation about Sderot. After that, we climbed a small hill that gave as a view of Gaza.
We helped out in Sderot by cleaning up and painting a hangout lounge for local teenagers.
What really hit me was when we went to the local park. Like any other park there were swings and slides. However, in addition to the normal things you would find at a park there was also a giant cement caterpillar that seemed to be a tunnel that kids can run through. The tour guide explained that it was actually a bomb shelter.
At that point I thought to myself how crazy it is that they have to live with this reality on a daily basis. Even the smallest things, like going to the park with your kids, can become a nightmare.
Another thing that hit home was when I asked the tour guide, “Why, out of the thousands of missiles that were fired, did only a few hit their target?” He responded that I was mistaken and many streets throughout Sderot had been hit. However, he pointed out, there have been zero casualties. The reason for this is because the Israeli government has spent over half a billion dollars to create a missile warning system to keep the residents of Israel safe. The tour guide continued that the media chooses not to report on the challenges facing the residents of Sderot and that is why our coming to Sderot and learning about it is so important.
The lesson that I took out of the day was not to take anything for granted, especially the little things like going to the park with friends.
-Netanel Muskat