■ IN 1996, Moshe Schayek, a young man
desperate for a bone marrow transplant,
turned to Ezer Mizion in the hope of finding
a matching donor. Ezer Mizion’s Cancer
Support Division helped his family coordinate
a bone marrow drive, and the response
was amazing. Some 5,000 people lined up
in Jerusalem, wanting to help save his life.
Unfortunately, it was to no avail. No match
was found and Schayek died. But he left a
legacy that has enabled close to 10,000
other people in 48 countries around the
world to live. The search led to the establishment
in 1998 of Ezer Mizion’s International
Bone Marrow Donor Registry, which is
headed by Bracha Zisser.
As of August 1, 2016, the Registry has
grown to include 818,266 potential donors,
of whom 394,379 are IDF recruits who
joined the registry following a landmark
agreement between Ezer Mizion and the
Israel Defense Forces, whereby new recruits
routinely undergo testing as part of their
induction process.
On Sunday, September 19, in celebration
of the 10th anniversary of this collaborative
lifesaving effort between the IDF and Ezer
Mizion, 650 soldiers will receive Gift of Life
medals at a special ceremony at the President’s
Residence, in the presence of President
Reuven Rivlin, Hagai Toplansky, commander
of the IDF’s Personnel Directorate,
Brocha Zisser and Ezer Mizion founder Rabbi Chananya
Chollak.
