Jerusalem Post
January 7, 2010

By Barbara Sofer

On the patio of Nagish Café, a blind man is drinking coffee with a friend who has arrived in an electric wheelchair. Inside, I’m having lunch with the Righteous Among the Nations, a group of women who all risked their lives to save Jews during the Holocaust. We’re in Ramat Yishai, a small town in the Jezreel Valley, emerald green this winter from abundant rain.
Righteous Among the Nations..

Over the past weeks, the probability that we will need to release so many of our malevolent enemies to free Gilad Schalit has weighed heavy on us. In addition, I’ve just finished reading Operation Last Chance, Ephraim Zuroff’s biographical account of his work as a Nazi hunter. Despite the worthy cause, too often mass murderers of our people have succeeded in living out their lives without having to face justice.

In contrast to those evil persons, I am privileged to be surrounded by these living examples of righteousness and valor. A voluntary organization called ATZUM has initiated the gathering. Officially recognized Righteous Among the Nations are entitled to citizenship in Israel. Over the decades since World War II, 100 rescuers have taken advantage of this right and have moved here. Many have passed away, but currently the country is home to a surviving 29 rescuers and nine widow/ers of surviving rescuers. They were youngsters when their parents stood against the tide of anti-Semitism, risking their children to save strangers. [Read more…]