The following are a few notes from the diary I kept during my Fall '2002 volunteer experience in Israel.

The group I joined in Israel is called: SAR_EL. It is run by the Israel Defense Forces to utilize volunteers in non-combat roles to relieve some of the reservists called up because of terrorist bomb attacks on Israeli civilians. The people in Israel were grateful that our group came to volunteer and to show solidarity.

Stationed on an army base, I packed & unpacked and counted medical supplies, including anti-nerve gas injections, burn medication, and other needles and pharmaceuticals, into large boxes which went to army field units. I was "supervised" by two base employees, neither of whom could speak English so they constantly called me: "Hey You!" Then they would give me directions in Hebrew. I don't understand Hebrew, but I was usually able to figure out what they wanted me to do. While they were constantly arguing with each other about one thing or another, they were respectful to me.

The days were sunny--and hot!--in the mid 90's every day, with little or no air conditioning. We slept on army cots, eight in each barracks. The food was the same for breakfast, lunch and dinner. During lunch, they added a kind of stewed chicken or spaghetti that looked (and tasted) like it came out of a can of Chef Boyardee! Every day's meal consisted of hard boiled egg, cheese, sliced fresh cucumber, sliced fresh tomatoes, yogurt, cottage cheese, some kind of eggplant dish...that's about it. Oh, they handed out popsicles after each meal (including breakfast!).

Our particular group of about twenty-five was diverse--people in our unit came from places as far away as Australia, London, and Mexico. Age varied too, from late 20's to a Gentile couple from South Africa in their 70's. The two attractive 19 year olds (on either side of me in the photo) are regular army soldiers in charge of our group. The photo shows them giving me an emblem to wear on my Army uniform shoulder epaulets to signify that I had completed the first week.

A couple of nights during the week we listened to lectures. One night each week we went into Tel Aviv. That was the highlight of the work week -cold beers and a decent meal at a restaurant! And we ganged up on the bus driver and our soldier leaders to take us to a shopping center where I bought fresh fruits and juice and chocolate, and got to an internet cafe. One weekend I rented a car with another fellow in our group. We drove up the coastal road and then headed to the Galilee and the Golan. We went over the road on which two weeks after I returned home, terrorists rammed a bus killing 14 Israeli civilians. While I was there, I did not feel afraid, but I did avoid busses and very crowded places. The security is tight and that leaves one with a sense of personal security.

In Jerusalem, our group visited the ancient tunnel under the Western Wall. I touched the bricks neatly set by King Herod's slaves (Jewish?), and the foundation of Mt. Moriah, where, according to the Bible, Abraham was asked to sacrifice his son, Isaac, and where the Ark of the Covenant is buried somewhere under Al Asqa's Golden Domed Mosque, in King Solomon's Temple just dozens of feet from where I was standing.

David Ben-Gurion's home in Tel Aviv is impressive, too. The building itself and his furniture are unimpressive. But on his wall are quotes from his speeches. It is clear that the founder of the modern State of Israel was an extraordinarily forward-thinking man. He even practiced Yoga with his good friend the then Prime Minister and founder of modern Burma.

Every Saturday in Tel Aviv, I listened to Israeli Music being played while people danced on the Promenade in front of the Panorama Hotel where I stayed during the weekend. Anyone could join the dancing. There were dozens of young and old people, professional dancers and people barely in step. Some danced alone, some as couples, and sometimes people held hands dancing in large circles. Since I love lively Israeli music, I was able to feel their spirit.

The dancing especially impressed upon me how the Israeli people persevere, despite the terrorist bombings that are deliberately aimed at civilians.

Some leading US newspapers compare the total number of Israeli deaths to the total number of Palestinian deaths. This is wickedly misleading because it fails to note most of the Israeli deaths are civilian --grandmothers, children, people simply commuting to work, such as the recent bus bombing-- while the greatest number of the Arab Palestinian deaths are suicide bombers and snipers killed firing at soldiers.

On my last evening in Israel, I took a bus. It travels between hotels to take tourists to the airport. I was the only person on the bus with the driver. His last words to me as I stepped off the bus at the airport were: "Please don't forget about us."

What I did was one of the more meaningful things I've ever done in my life. I feel real good about it!

Stan Gornish