SINCE OCTOBER 7th
HIGHLIGHTS
- We have onboarded over 400 injured soldiers in the first month of the war. With a reported 800+ soldiers injured, this number will likely double in the next 18 months.
- We spent over $650,000 to provide for immediate needs, including medical equipment, supplies and technology for hospital stays, financial aid for families, accommodations for members in the south of Israel, and mental health support.
- We began the second stage of hospital mentoring, where newly injured soldiers are matched injury for injury with a BFL mentor who has learned to thrive with the same injury.
- We opened a new WhatsApp Emergency Hotline, where BFL members, the newly injured soldiers, and their families are able to communicate their medical, emotional, and financial needs.
- 80% of the activities in the Beit Achims (our BFL centers) in central Israel and the north have been restored while we are creating new programs to accommodate the post-October 7th needs.
- We established a mentoring project that connects each soldier and their partner/spouse with a mentor and their partner/spouse to help guide them and their families through their rehabilitation process.
- We are providing urgent medical second opinions for new members with complex injuries, provided by medical specialists from North America.
- We raised $15 million of a $20 million emergency campaign to rapidly scale BFL in order to absorb 2,000+ injured soldiers.
NEW MEMBER SPOTLIGHT:
ITAI S., Maglan Unit
On the morning of October 7th, Itai rushed to join his unit, Maglan, as they deployed to the Southern kibbutzes to rescue civilians from the Hamas terror.
As the battle began, Itai’s team was ambushed. A grenade exploded near him, and metal fragments tore through his neck and arm. Itai, badly wounded, continued to fight the terrorists. Noticing the severity of Itai’s injury, the unit’s medic forced him to the ground to stop the bleeding and saved Itai’s life.
At the hospital, Itai underwent emergency surgery to repair extensive damage to his neck. When he regained consciousness, he was met with the devastating news that three of his teammates were killed.
“Ben didn’t just come by my hospital bed once. He came back the next day, and the day after that. They are taking care of everything. I did not want to be injured, but I can’t wait to be part of this BFL family.” – Itai
Early on in his hospital stay, Itai was visited by Ben, a BFL member who had overcome similar injuries. The connection was immediate and Ben provided Itai with needs for his hospital stay as well as something more profound, a brother for life.
Brothers for Life will provide emergency services as the number of injuries continues to rise and is expected to reach as high as 2,000 over the next 24 months.
Our focus is to maintain the exceptional service we have been providing to our existing 1,300+ BFL veterans in the last 15 years while preparing to double the scale of our operations as we absorb the newly injured. Help us help those who have defended Israel and the Jewish people.