Elizabeth Sherstock, chairwoman of the Jewish community in the eastern Ukrainian city of Sumy and director of the JDC's Chesed Welfare Center in the city, was chosen to light the Diaspora beacon on the 74th Independence Day.
Elizabeth, has run the Center of Grace since 2015, through the Corona crisis to the war in Ukraine, for the most vulnerable populations in the local Jewish community, including the elderly and Holocaust survivors, people with disabilities, children, young people at risk and more.
Sherstock led the efforts to distribute humanitarian aid, food, medicine and other essential products to the Jewish community in the city, as well as being responsible for a highly complex rescue operation, in which more than 150 elderly and disabled people were evacuated from the bombed-out city.
She says that for her, lighting the beacon symbolizes the spirit of mutual guarantee and responsibility of the Jews towards each other.
Managed a charity center in Ukraine under fire: Elizabeth and staff of the Ministry of Diaspora, Photo: Ministry of Diaspora
The Minister of the Diaspora, Dr. Nachman Shai, said of her choice to hold a beacon: "Elizabeth represents the values of mutual guarantee, kindness, Zionism and global Jewish brotherhood, it is well deserved."
Operated a charity center in Ukraine under Russian fire
Elizabeth, 51, has dedicated her entire professional life to the Jewish community of the city of Sumy in Ukraine.
The local Jewish community is known as the "Singing Community", known for its creativity and involvement in the entire cultural life of the city and the region.
In 1998, when the JDC established the Center of Grace in the city, Elizabeth set up the "Spring" project - a group of intergenerational Jewish poetry and music, which brought together children, young people and adults alike for a shared Jewish experience.
The group's popularity led to the establishment of the Aviv School of Music, which is also part of the city's Jewish school.
In 2001, Elizabeth began running the Elderly Day Center at the City of Sumy, in 2006 she progressed to manage the entire charity home care system, and in 2012 began leading the Sumi Jewish community, until in 2015 she was appointed director of the Sumy Charity Center.
Elizabeth led the charity during the complex period of the Corona crisis, turning its activities into digital means, in order to continue to address the elderly without endangering their health.
This effort included developing new professional practices, training staff and volunteers, providing relevant equipment for digital services to the elderly and instructing them on how to use it and more.
With the outbreak of the war, the city of Sumy, near the border with Russia, was one of the first to suffer from incessant shelling.
After the first night of shelling in the city, Elizabeth received constant requests to hold a virtual mass community singing event, and indeed that night hundreds of community members connected each from home, basement, subway, shelter or anywhere else, singing Jewish songs together to deal with stress and hardship. .
Elizabeth has led the effort to purchase food, medicine and emergency equipment on a huge scale, storing and distributing it through an extensive network of Center of Charity staff and volunteers, to the most vulnerable populations in the city, with an emphasis on the elderly and people with disabilities confined to their homes.
She conducted the charity activity under fire while staying in the basement of her home in Sumy.
With the opening of a humanitarian corridor for a limited time, Elizabeth led a large-scale rescue operation of about 150 people at once, who set out for the city to the west.
The complex operation included a number of vehicles, buses, minibuses and more, during which nursing elderly people in complex situations, people with disabilities, children with special needs and more were evacuated.
Given the complexity of the operation, Elizabeth herself led the rescue convoy.
In light of the vast outcrop scattered all over the access roads to the city of Sumy, Elizabeth has since been unable to return home and is staying as an internally displaced person in western Ukraine and continues to remotely manage the center of grace in Sumy, is in daily contact with staff and volunteers and continues to save lives.
Led a rescue operation in Sumy.
Residential buildings damaged by shelling in the Sumy area, Photo: Reuters
Elizabeth married, mother to son and daughter.
Her husband and son are staying with her in Ukraine, and she has another daughter who lives in Israel.
10 months ago, her first granddaughter was born here in Israel.
Throughout her stay in the basement of her home, the photos of her granddaughter that she received daily on WhatsApp from her daughter from Israel, helped her deal with the complex situation.
"A ray of light that broke the darkness that enveloped Ukraine"
Diaspora Minister Dr. Nachman Shai said: "Jewish and Israeli organizations, volunteers and professionals, Elizabeth, her friends and colleagues, were a beacon of light that shattered the darkness that enveloped Ukraine. And what is Jewish solidarity.We cherish them a great thank you and we will always remember their wonderful work.
We decided to recommend Elizabeth because it represents values of mutual guarantee, kindness, Zionism and global Jewish brotherhood, it is definitely worthy.
It is our human commitment to help every person in distress and to us, the Jewish people have even a double responsibility to help, assist and ensure the safety of people in the most difficult situations. "
Stephen Oscar, JDC's Executive Director at the Commonwealth of Independent States, said: "The work of Elizabeth, who has led as a director of charity in Sumy, humanitarian aid operations for the Jewish community in the city and heroic rescue operations, is unparalleled and expresses the saying 'All Israel is responsible for each other "This is the beautiful face of the Jewish community around the world."
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