Photo Friday (vol. LXIII) [Pina Chama edition]

Yom Ha'Atzma'ut (Israel Independence Day) just wouldn't be the same without our annual outing to volunteer at the local Pina Chama (literally: warm corner), a small prefab building where the communities of Gush Etzion conspire to spoil the men and woman from all over Israel whose service in the IDF brings them to our area.

Throughout the year... Sunday through Thursday from morning 'til evening... any soldier can stop in and find free cold or hot drinks, home baked cookies and cakes (all donated/baked by residents of Gush Etzion)... as well as a couple of volunteer dodim/dodot (aunts and uncles) to make sure everything is served up with a smile.

But on Yom Ha'Atzma'ut all the stops are pulled out and an all-day mangel (BBQ) is arranged for the soldiers.  From 11:00 AM until almost nightfall hundreds of soldiers stop by in Jeeps, ambulances, troop carriers and on foot.  They are tired and dirty and far from family and friends on this holiday... so the communities in our area do everything possible to make sure they feel appreciated.

Burgers, hotdogs, chicken wings, kababs, and even steaks crowd the grill from morning till dusk and a dizzying array of salads, cakes, cookies, drinks and fresh breads round out the meal.

It seems that as soon as a soldier leaves to return to his/her post, another grabs a plate and sits down to eat.  Periodically a radio call comes in with numbers of troops that are stationed in remote outposts who can't make it in to the Pina Chama and the volunteer dodot and dodim fly into action packing up meals to be taken out to them by jeeps that are just leaving.

This year fellow blogger Cara was with us for the holiday and spent her last day in Israel lending a hand serving the troops.  Now the cynical among you might think she was just trying meet some of these cute soldiers, but Cara has a heart of gold and I'm sure that such selfish motives were only 3rd or 4th on her list of reasons for volunteering.  :-)

This first picture is of Gilad (in Red Sox cap) and a friend with a group of soldiers who had just pulled up in their Jeep.  The soldier on the right looks eerily like Psychotoddler:

Next up is a peek inside the Pina Chama.  You'll notice that every inch of wall space and ceiling is crowded with thank you notes scribbled on unit flags, shoulder tags and other military souvenirs left by the grateful soldiers throughout the year.

There were also plenty of tables outside where the overflow crowd enjoyed their meals:

And they just kept arriving...

I wouldn't want anyone to think that only men serve in the field, so here are a couple of some equally tired and dusty Chayalot (female soldiers):

And what about food?  You want to see food?

... and more food (this is some of the volunteers packing meals to send out to soldiers who couldn't make it in from their outposts)...

As usual, I took my place serving as head griller and designated smoke magnet:

This should give you an idea of the yummy selection:

That's about it for pictures this week, but trust me when I tell you that these few images don't even come close to conveying the parade of soldiers that came through the Pina Chama all day or how appreciative they were of a nice Mangel so far from the comfort of home.

If you'd like to make a contribution to the Pina Chama please send checks to:

The Pina Chama
8/2 Rechov Haziporen
Efrat, 90435
ISRAEL

Or to volunteer as a Dod or Doda serving cakes and drinks to the soldiers for a couple of hours during a visit to Israel, please send me an email (treppenwitz AT gmail DOT com) and I will put you in touch with the volunteer coordinator.

Here are the treppenwitz Yom Ha'Atzma'ut posts from the past couple of years:

Last year

Two yeas ago

Shabbat Shalom!