Just days before the International Holocaust Remembrance Day, a stream of dignitaries arrived in Israel, where they ate quality food and sipped on fine wine.
But there is another side to things: Holocaust survivors living without electricity, dependent on provisions and heating appliances from the Chasdei Naomi Association so they do not freeze to death.
In Israel 2020, Holocaust survivors have been abandoned.
"They took my sister and cut her head off in front of my eyes. Is there anything crueler than that?" says Jenny Rosenstein, a Holocaust survivor and painter who experienced first hand the brutality of the Nazis.
Rosenstein joined Chasdei Naomi’s campaign to collect heaters and blankets for survivors in Israel, where they need help to survive the winter.
The campaign went viral and caught the attention of Facebook Israel General Manager Adi Soffer Teeni.
Soffer Teeni was greatly moved by the campaign and decided to organize an exhibition to honor Jenny at Facebook's Israel office, much to the 84-year-old’s excitement.
The living conditions of Holocaust survivors in Israel 2020 is simply outrageous.
The headline of this article is a direct quote from a Holocaust survivor who relies on Chasdei Naomi.
A Holocaust survivor who lives in harsh conditions and represents the true face of thousands of survivors living in Israel.
These survivors have to choose between electricity, food or medicine. They are forced to beg for food and some even prefer to die than live under these parlous conditions.
"The Jewish holidays are my most hated time of the year. They remind me how hard it is for me and how lonely I am. I survived Hitler, but I can hardly survive the holidays" - D, a Holocaust survivor from Tel Aviv.
"They murdered my entire family - but they [German authorities] say that I do not meet the criteria to be recognized as a Holocaust survivor" - Olga from Ramla
These things are not easy to read, and we at Chasdei Naomi encounter such sights on a daily basis, as we distribute food and heating equipment to survivors.
Next Sunday alone, we will distribute 500 heating products to survivors with the assistance of Israel Police.
In the past two years, we have handed out almost 50,000 heating products. Why are the survivors who escaped the infernos of Europe allowed to freeze and starve in the Jewish state?
Chasdei Naomi supports some 80,000 people in Israel. We take care of everything from weddings for those who lost their entire families to paying electricity bills so survivors don’t live in the dark.
We donate thousands of food packages every month to those in need, support cancer patients and more.
And while these are all indispensable efforts, one has to wonder as to why Holocaust survivors in the Jewish state are allowed to suffer so much.
My grandfather, may he rest in peace, was a Holocaust survivor and he would be horrified and ashamed if he knew how my country treated those who endured the same horrors.
We at Chasdei Naomi Association see the most heart-wrenching cases. We raise funds for and donate to those that are in need and every day, I hope that the time will come when our work is done by those in power. Until then, people need our help and we - and you - cannot ignore them.
Tamir Haas is the public relations manager at Chasdei Naomi Association. To donate to winter heating equipment donation for Holocaust survivors, click here