New Jersey, Israel, and you
Battle tested
In 1948, I was 18, and volunteered to travel from a German DP camp to Israel. I served in the Palmach. We didn’t have our own airplanes, but we had volunteers from all over the world. They transferred us from Tel Nof to Beer Sheba, which was still under Egyptian control. We landed in Beer Sheba in the desert sand, then discovered a rebel fighter had shot a bullet into our plane and had missed the gas tank by only two inches. We liberated Beer Sheba in five hours. Yitzhak Sadeh was our general. After capturing Beer Sheba, we fought in Uja al-Rafiah. In the desert, British fighters attacked us. I lost many friends. Every time I return to Beer Sheba to visit my brother-in-law, I am reminded of friends who were killed; a monument stands on a nearby mountain. I eventually immigrated to the United States and have lived here for many years with my wife, three children, and five grandchildren.
Itzhak Szteinberg, Monroe Township
If you’re a New Jerseyan, or have connections to the state, we’d like to hear your Israel story.
The New Jersey Jewish News is putting together an Israel@60 supplement, and wants to include an array of voices from people throughout the community describing their personal attachments to Israel. If you want to take part, then please share with us a photograph or other item that you find particularly memorable, along with a short statement of what it portrays, and what it says about your attachment or connections to Israel.
An example is above. The deadline is April 1 (easy to remember). Please include an identifying line with your name, town of residence, and identifying information of your choosing (e.g. organizational or synagogue affiliation, etc.) Email submissions to editorial@njjewishnews.com, and put Israel Memories in the subject line.
Please feel free to extend this invitation to others who might have great stories to tell.
JustASC is written by Andrew Silow-Carroll, Editor-in-Chief of the 