Yoram Eliyahu

Kirat-Shmona, is a small city in northern Israel on the western slopes of the Hula Valley, bordering on Lebanon. It is also the home town of Yoram Eliyahu. While the geography of Yoram Eliyahu place of birth contributes to its natural beauty, it also makes it an easy target for bombings across the Lebanese border. In the Lebanon War of 2006, the city was damaged by Hezbollah Katyusha rocket fire. Thankfully, most of the population had been evacuated, but there was a great deal of damage to the buildings in the city. One of the most severely damaged buildings was a small synagogue, which was rendered unusable.

No stranger to the devastation of war, Yoram Eliyahu felt compelled to do whatever he could to help when he learned of the attack. Although he made a significant contribution toward the cost of repairs, he knew the damage went deeper than the material things. He vowed to do more to help this community in their time of need.

Knowing the importance of the synagogue to the life of any Jewish community, he wanted to do something that would help the people of Kirat-Shmona to heal on the spiritual level as well, so he set about finding having a very special Sefer Torah created for the rebuilt synagogue.

Yoram did his research , learning that the Torah must be handwritten on a very specific grade of parchment paper. Driven as he was by the desire to do something special for the people of his home town, Yoram also discovered a particularly skilled writer (sofer) to complete the Torah assignment. When all was done, he went to great lengths to make sure that the new Torah would arrive safely.

Upon completion of the project to rebuild the synagogue, the new Torah was delivered. The people of Kirat-Shmona continue to use the donated Sefer Torah and thrive in the rebuilt synagogue.