One hundred twenty people from both Jewish and non-Jewish communities came to honor the men and women who sacrificed their lives to protect Israel last Sunday in the Graduate Student Lounge on the College Avenue campus. Rutgers Hillel hosted "What is a Life Worth: Israel Remembrance Day" commemorating the fallen soldiers in the Israeli army. In Hebrew, the day is called Yom HaZikaron, meaning the day to remember.
"I think often what happens in memorials, and sad, commemorating types of events, is people just try to elicit a purely emotional response without getting them to think about the issues and how they feel," Levenson said. "We didn't want people to just be sad, but to really be thoughtful about it."
The service focused the attention of the participants on learning about the history of the country, and how it was established through the sacrifices of the many soldiers who have died.
"The goal was also to encourage people to question their own convictions and think about their own ideology and actions. We wanted to make people think," Rutgers College senior Emmy Stup said.
A short video was shown with interviews of about 10 Jewish students and Hillel members who answered questions about their connection to Israel - including whether or not they would ever choose to serve in the Israel Defense Force, the Israeli Army.
Elisa Levine, the sister of Michael Levine, a soldier killed in August during clashes with Hezbollah in the southern Lebanese village of Aita al-Shaab, answered questions from the video according to Michael's perspective.
She spoke about his life, sharing some of Levine's passions and love for Israel. Levine was planning on attending the University, but instead after graduating from high school in Philadelphia went to Israel to become an Israeli citizen, and joined the IDF.
Levine was determined to become a paratrooper in the army, and he convinced the army to let him, even though he was smaller than most paratroopers. His dedication and strong will allowed him to join an elite paratroop unit.
While visiting his family in America, Levine heard about the outbreak of war, and he immediately went back to Israel to help fight. His troop had already gone to the Israeli- Lebanon border, and he insisted on meeting up with his troop. While there, he was sent to check if a building was clear so the rest of his troop could come in, was shot and killed in action.
Soon after Levine's death, the Jewish Community Center of Philadelphia created the Michael Levine Memorial Fund in Israel to help lone soldiers, soldiers who do not have family in Israel, with a support system.
The Rutgers community thought it was beneficial for the students to hear a personal story about how the war to sustain Israel has affected Americans and Israelis.
"This event was significant because it is important for American Jews to think critically about their relationship with Israel," Stup said. "It is also important to acknowledge the amount of energy, and sometimes pain that has gone into protecting the Jewish homeland. Part of supporting Israel is recognizing that it is a complicated situation, and the death of soldiers and civilians is a tremendous loss."
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