Yom Ha'Atzmaut 5778
April 19, 2018


In honor of Yom Ha'Atzmaut, and the 70th birthday of the State of Israel,
here are links to a few articles contained in various Yizkor Books that
JewishGen has translated. They contain first-hand accounts of the dreams,
yearnings, desires, and hardships that people experienced to reach the
land of Israel.

(1) Plonsk, Poland: "My Youth in Plonsk" - by David Ben-Gurion.
https://www.jewishgen.org/Yizkor/plonsk/plo031.html
This article >from the Plonsk, Poland Yizkor Book was written by the first
Prime Minister of Israel, and describes, in great detail, his desire to
embrace the Hebrew language, and to live in Israel >from a young age.

(2) "I Made Aliyah on the Eve of the Holocaust" (scroll down to p. 195) -
by Sarah Yasmin (Schwartzblat).
https://www.jewishgen.org/yizkor/rokitnoye/rok179.html
Anyone who has read the Leon Uris book "Exodus" or seen the movie will
recognize this story written by a former resident of Roktyne (which is
included in the Roktyne, Ukraine Yizkor Book). Sarah writes of the
squalid conditions of the decrepit ships, the fears of people who knew
the chances to reach 'Eretz Yisroel' "were dim" and the British efforts
to turn away refugees.

(3) "In the days of the Second Aliyah" - by Rivka Machneimy (Holodenko).
https://www.jewishgen.org/yizkor/bender/ben081.html
This article (>from the Bender, Moldova Yizkor Book) was written by the
daughter of Baruch Holodenko (a well-known educator, and delegate to the
Zionist Congress), who made Aliyah at the age of 17, and against the
wishes of her father.

4) ">from Divenishok to Eretz-Israel" (scroll down to page 119) - by
Khenye Harari. https://www.jewishgen.org/yizkor/dieveniskes/die087.html
A small article (>from the Divenishok, Lithuania Yizkor Book) which
imparts the joy and anticipation the author felt as she approached Israel.

Wishing you all the best and Chag Sameach,

Avraham Groll
Director
JewishGen.org