Dear Congregation, A Yom Tov that was supposed to be a time of joy and celebration was suddenly twisted into a time of shock and mourning. The murdered, wounded, and captured Israelis dominate our thoughts and the magnitude of the tragedy is staggering. What can we do? Unfortunately, the Jewish people are not new to terror and persecution, and our approach has always been, and will continue to be, two-fold. First and foremost we must storm the gates of Heaven and daven to Hashem that He bring a speedy end to this crisis. Please free those who have been captured, please heal the wounded, and please bring comfort to the bereaved. However, we must also do our hishtadlus - our due diligence, to ensure that the State of Israel has what it needs to deal with this tragedy. Please donate generously for Israel’s immediate and acute needs and we will be distributing the funds collected to organizations on the front lines. The OU and the Five Towns community have launched a platform to track and streamline the process of collecting and dispensing our donations. The distributions will be under my guidance and the guidance of our board and the Five Towns Task Force. Thank you to those who have already donated, and to those who have not yet donated, please be generous as the needs are great. Davening and hoping that Hashem will see our efforts, hear our Tefillos, and grant us a speedy yeshua. Rabbi Ephraim Polakoff