For many, the routine flow of daily life is defined by what’s in our inbox, and history is something we studied in school. But for the Jewish people, the illusion that today and yesterday belong to separate realms is harder to maintain. Over the past century we have lived history and everyday life more as a single thread, with mundane concerns constantly buffeted by existential threat and millennial achievement.

We can count the watershed moments in our sleep: exile and Holocaust; migration from despotic to free nations; aliyah and the rebirth of Israel; building a robust Jewish society and culture under constant pressure; seeing antisemitism rise, fall and rise again. And now we are witnessing Israel’s longest war, the Jewish nation’s lowest point emotionally, and yet, a nation energized and still growing.

Hadassah is embedded deeply in the Israeli heart and experience, building almost constantly since our founding. We build both when we are optimistic and when we are in pain. Today, once again we are fueled by the sense of loss and the instinct to heal.

The dynamism of the Hadassah Medical Organization is etched on the horizon. We inaugurated our hospital on Mount Scopus in 1939, lost it behind enemy lines in 1948 and regained it in 1967. Between those dates, our medical staff worked in temporary quarters in central Jerusalem until our Ein Kerem campus opened in 1961. And since the 1990s, there has rarely been a time without construction cranes visible on the Hadassah landscape in Jerusalem.

The Gaza war spurred us to accelerate our timetable. In January of this year, acutely aware of the need to treat injured
soldiers and civilians, we began the phased opening of our Gandel Rehabilitation Center at Hadassah Hospital Mount Scopus several months ahead of schedule. In May, we inaugurated the first two floors of our reimagined Round Building—original anchor of the Ein Kerem campus—and by year’s end, we will open another two floors.

Given the perennial threat of war, the design of both the renovated Round Building and the Sarah Wetsman Davidson Hospital Tower in Ein Kerem—dedicated in 2012—feature underground operating theaters and intensive care units.

Expanding our capacity to respond to war and terrorism has long been integral to Hadassah’s planning. But after October 7, we needed to shift into a higher gear. Maintaining progress in our institutions depends on all of us. I appeal to Hadassah’s members, friends and donors to be part of our current fundraising effort, Together We Will Heal. And don’t forget Giving Tuesday, which falls this year on December 3.

Even as we maintain focus on our projects in Israel, we are all mindful—and alarmed—over rising antisemitism in America and around the world. Hatred of Jews is like a virus that can go into remission but is never eradicated. It has soared to new levels since the war with Hamas began. Hadassah recently completed a survey, Everyday Antisemitism: Women’s Stories, and the results will be out shortly. We’ll be sending that data to Congress and the media to help them better understand how our lives have been impacted by the surge in antisemitism. You can help spread the word, too, by sharing the results from our website or social media accounts.

When history merges with daily life, we also feel our holidays more keenly. As my family and I light Hanukkah candles this year, we will place hanukkiyot in the front and back windows of our home. We do this every year, but now the public aspect of our observance feels more important than ever. Just as Israel is a light unto the nations, I believe we should all shine our own light.

May Hanukkah this year be sweet for us all—and may the light herald peace and healing for Israel and its neighbors.