1972: On the Suez

Our destination: Sinai and the Suez Canal. Our purpose: to bring the holiday spirit to the soldiers in the bunkers, on the front. Our motto: “and you shall spread forth" — the motto of Chabad. We were Chassidim, two bus loads full, messengers of the Rebbe, on a divine mission of great importance… Slowly the buses ascended the steep hill to the army fort, and there we prayed, using the opportunity to help all the soldiers in and around the base to don tefillin… Any unfamiliar face is a welcome sight to the sand blown eyes of the brave fighting men in the vast wilds of Sinai. Add a scraggly youthful beard, a broad friendly smile and a pair of tefillin, and the warm shaloms tell you that you are at home with your long lost brothers…

The New York Times, December 10, 1972