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More Americans Should Take a Lesson From Israel and Find True Purpose on Memorial Day
Lt. Gen. Enzo Vecciarelli, chief of staff of the Italian Air Force, places a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Arlington National Cemetery, Feb. 13, 2017, in Arlington, Va. Photo: Wikimedia Commons/U.S. Army photo by Rachel Larue/Arlington National Cemetery/released.
As we prepare to mark Memorial Day, many Americans are looking forward to barbecues and sales. “To Americans, Memorial Day weekend marks the unofficial beginning of summer,” reads a description of the day posted on the websites of US embassies around the world.
That description goes on to say, “But at its heart, Memorial Day is a day when Americans reflect on the sacrifice of those who have given their lives in military service.”
The truth, however, is this latter framing of Memorial Day is mainly relegated to military families and towns that are home to military bases. For most others, remembering those who lost their lives for our country is not more than an afterthought.
For years, as an American, I admit that I almost always didn’t give this a second thought. It was just the way it was. Most major or existential military conflicts happened far away (not a few hours from home) and decades in the past, and even the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan only required a tiny portion of Americans to serve and fight — meaning few have a personal connection to loss or even to military service, or are acutely conscious of its importance.
However, as an American who now lives in Israel, my perspective on Memorial Day, and how we mark it in the United States has shifted dramatically— and not only due to my personal stakes and tragic losses in Israel’s current war. My son is a soldier in the IDF — as are thousands of the students and alumni from the network of educational institutions that I oversee. Sadly, since the war began on Oct. 7, 2023, we have lost 20 alumni and 38 first-degree relatives of our students and faculty, including many men with wives and families who were serving reserve duty.
This personal connection to service and loss is not unique. Because Israel is a country of only about 10 million people, military service is a requirement for much of the population — and especially due to the ongoing war, most people know someone who has been killed in service to the country.
But putting aside the aspect of personal connection, the day is monumental because of the solemn way Israel marks it; even visitors feel the emotions of the day. Shops and restaurants are closed. Names of the dead are read aloud in public places for hours on end, and at two different points, sirens ring out across the country, and everyone comes to a stop to remember the fallen.
The day is heavy and difficult, but it is also infused with meaning. The knowledge that so many have died — whether recently or decades ago — so that life can continue, is motivating, helping people recognize their talents, opportunities, and blessings. There is also a communal aspect of the day, with the awareness that these sacrifices affect everyone’s ability to live safely and securely, helping create bonds in society, and reducing loneliness in general.
It is this feeling of community and having people they can count on that — year after year — leads to Israel being ranked high in the global happiness index, despite the difficulty of daily life.
This meaning, purpose, and communal aspect of the day is something that we can all learn from, especially in the US, where many suffer from lack of purpose, and loneliness is considered a public health emergency.
Leaders, communities, schools, and even individual families in the US should consider taking small steps to help bring back meaning to Memorial Day.
This can, of course, be done through memorial ceremonies or learning more about the fallen in schools. But it would be most effective if such efforts met most of the public where they will be on Memorial Day — at malls, parks, and on the road to take advantage of the day off from work. Holding a moment of silence or hanging up posters with stories and photos of the fallen would go a long way in reminding people about the true purpose of the day.
Being more aware of these sacrifices could, in turn, be the reminder that many Americans need to appreciate our opportunities despite the clear challenges in our society. It could also be a reminder that we as individuals are not alone, giving us the strength to do our best and continue improving our own lives along with our communities and country. This, after all, is why more than 600,000 Americans have paid the ultimate price since World War I. We must remember that — at the very least on Memorial Day.
Rabbi Dr. Kenneth Brander is the President of Ohr Torah Stone, an international network of 32 religious educational, leadership, and social action programs including the Ohr Torah Interfaith Center. He was previously Vice President of Yeshiva University.
The post More Americans Should Take a Lesson From Israel and Find True Purpose on Memorial Day first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Tourists Stranded in Israel as Sirens Sound, Missiles Fly, Planes Grounded
FILE PHOTO: A worker at Ben Gurion International Airport in Israel sits at the arrivals terminal as all flights from and to the airport are indicated cancel, following an Israeli attack on Iran. June 13, 2025 Photo: REUTERS/Tomer Appelbaum
Woken by air raid sirens, hurrying to bomb shelters, scouring travel sites for escape routes — thousands of tourists in Israel have found their holiday plans upended by the country’s conflict with Iran.
Israel launched a surprise attack on Iran in the early hours of Friday, shutting down the national airspace and telling people to remain where they were as the arch Middle East foes traded deadly blows.
The violence has left around 40,000 tourists blocked in Israel, according to the Ministry of Tourism. Airlines are cancelling flights until further notice, leaving travelers to decide whether to wait it out or seek costly detours through neighboring countries.
Justin Joyner, from California, is on holiday in Jerusalem with his father John, who lives in Nevada, and his son. They had expected some possible disruption, with Israel locked in a months-long conflict against Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip.
But, like most locals, they did not foresee a whole new war.
“We didn’t expect Israel to attack Iran. That is a completely different level of escalation,” Joyner said from his hotel in East Jerusalem, which, for the past two nights, has seen Iranian ballistic missiles flash overhead like a rain of meteorites.
“It’s unsettling to feel the shockwaves of intercepted missiles above you, and to take your family down to a bomb shelter. That’s just something we don’t think about in America,” he said.
Dr. Greer Glazer, who lives in Cleveland and was in Jerusalem for a nursing training program, faces a race down 10 flights of stairs in her hotel to reach the shelter when sirens sound — as they have done regularly since Friday night.
“I feel safe,” she said, “but waking from a dead sleep and running to the safe room, that’s been the hardest. My family is scared to death … They think it’s 24/7 destruction, but it’s not like that.”
THE JORDAN ROUTE
Glazer had been due to return home on June 29, but is looking to bring forward her departure. The easiest exit route is via land crossings into neighboring Jordan and then a flight out of Amman airport which has been operating in daylight hours.
Israeli media reported that the transgender US influencer Caitlyn Jenner, who only flew into Israel on Thursday for Tel Aviv’s since-canceled Gay Pride Parade, had left through Jordan.
Hours earlier, she had been photographed drinking a glass of red wine in a bomb shelter. “What an incredible way it has been to celebrate Shabbat,” she wrote on X.
Not everyone is rushing to leave.
Karen Tuhrim is visiting from London to see her daughter, who lives in Tel Aviv. “Within two days of being here, Israel attacked Iran. So now I’m stuck,” she said.
Unlike Jerusalem, Tel Aviv has taken direct hits from the Iranian missiles and Tuhrim has had to dip in and out of her hotel’s shelter. But she said she felt safe and was happy to be near her daughter.
“For me, personally, at the moment, I feel better being here than in London, watching it all on the news, knowing my daughter is here. So, for now, we’re good.”
Israel’s Ministry of Tourism has set up a round-the-clock virtual help desk in English and Hebrew for stranded travelers.
But for anyone stuck here, all the museums are closed until further notice, entrance to the Old City of Jerusalem is barred to non-residents and many shops remain shuttered.
“The streets and shops are empty,” said Jerusalem resident Anwar Abu Lafi, who saw no quick end to the gloom.
“People are yearning for a break, to find something good in this existing darkness. We are deluding ourselves into thinking that the future will be better,” he said.
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4 Killed by Missile in Arab Town of Tamra, Including a Mother and Her Two Daughters
Illustrative: A Magen David Adom ambulance. Photo: David King via Wikimedia Commons.
i24 News – In the early hours of Sunday morning, the Arab town of Tamra in northern Israel was struck by an Iranian missile, tragically claiming the lives of four women from the same family, including a mother and her two daughters, aged 13 and 20.
The missile caused severe damage, nearly collapsing the three- to four-story building where they lived.
Emergency services responded quickly, evacuating 14 injured individuals and providing care for eight others suffering from shock at Rambam Hospital in Haifa.
Despite the devastation, the community and first responders showed remarkable resilience and solidarity, working tirelessly to assist those affected.
Eli Bin, director general of Magen David Adom, described the scene as one of severe destruction but praised the swift and professional response of rescue teams. Paramedic Adnan Abu Rumi, one of the first on site, emphasized the dedication of emergency personnel in managing the crisis.
Residents like Hamudi, who was injured but survived, shared heartfelt accounts of the sudden impact, underscoring the strength of families and neighbors coming together in difficult times.
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Trump Sees Peace Between Iran and Israel Soon, Eyes Putin Role
Russian President Vladimir Putin delivers a speech during a session of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. Photo: Reuters/Maxim Shemetov
Despite evidence that the conflict between Israel and Iran is escalating, US President Donald Trump expressed optimism on Sunday that peace would come soon and cited the possibility that Russia’s Vladimir Putin could help.
In a social media post, Trump said there were many unspecified meetings about the issue happening and encouraged the two countries to make a deal. And in an interview with ABC News, he said he was open to Putin, whose forces invaded Ukraine and who has resisted Trump’s attempts to broker a ceasefire with Kyiv, serving as a mediator.
Israel and Iran launched fresh attacks on each other overnight into Sunday, killing scores.
“Iran and Israel should make a deal, and will make a deal,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social site. “We will have PEACE, soon, between Israel and Iran! Many calls and meetings now taking place.”
Trump did not offer any details about the meetings or evidence of progress toward peace. His assertion contradicted comments by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who said on Saturday that Israel’s campaign against Iran would intensify.
A White House spokeswoman did not immediately respond to a request for comment on how Trump and the White House were working to de-escalate the situation in the Middle East.
Trump told ABC News that Iran wanted to make a deal and indicated something like the Israel strikes would accelerate that. “Something like this had to happen because I think even from both sides, but something like this had to happen. They want to talk, and they will be talking,” Trump said, according to ABC reporter Rachel Scott. “May have forced a deal to go quicker, actually.”
The United States has engaged in talks with Iran about its nuclear program and Trump has told reporters previously that the talks were going well. But another round of discussions scheduled for Sunday in Oman was canceled after the Israeli and Iranian strikes.
Trump said he and Putin had discussed the situation in the Middle East on Saturday in a call that focused more on that conflict than the Russian war in Ukraine.
“He is ready. He called me about it,” Trump said about Putin serving as a mediator, according to Scott. “We had a long talk about it. We talked about this more than his situation. This is something I believe is going to get resolved.”
Trump, who portrays himself as a peacemaker and has drawn criticism from his political base for not being able to prevent the Israel-Iran conflict, cited other disputes that he took responsibility for solving, including between India and Pakistan, and lamented not receiving more praise for doing so.
“I do a lot, and never get credit for anything, but that’s OK, the PEOPLE understand. MAKE THE MIDDLE EAST GREAT AGAIN!” he wrote on Truth Social.
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