Building Israel and battling terrorism, one tree at a time

Rosaline and Alan Barron, both doctors from Newton, Mass., encourage planting trees
in Israel for Tu BiShvat. 

Alan and Rosaline Barron are kicking off their new JNF-sponsored mission right before the Jewish festival of Tu BiShvat, the "New Year for Trees." It's a time of renewal, and a celebration of nature and the environment. They are encouraging others to do the same. This article originally appeared here. 

By Marina Brodetsky

For years, Dr. Rosaline Barron woke up every day and asked herself the same question: “What have I done for Israel today?”

Now the recently retired gastroenterologist of Newton, Mass., has an answer -- and it's the same one every day. She's committed to planting a tree in Israel every day for the rest of her life through Jewish National Fund, continuing to help build the land of Israel.

"I can’t yet be there to live and work, but I can commit to Israel with the gift to JNF of planting one tree every day. It’s really a gift to myself,” she said. “By doing this small thing, my husband and I have participated in the ongoing journey to take care of building the land of Israel."

A child of Holocaust survivors, Barron remembers always having a Jewish National Fund Blue Box, or pushke, in the home that served as an inseparable link between Diaspora Jewry and the people of Israel. She and her husband, Alan, a retired internist, honeymooned in Israel and have returned many times, visiting the well-known sites, spending time with family, and yes, planting trees.

Jack Fleischer: Sportswriter, JFK and Truman colleague, JNF all-star

Jack Fleischer with Harry S. Truman.

Jack Fleischer may perhaps be best known as the person who coined the phrase "and now to honor America" that we hear so often before the playing of our national anthem at sporting events, but he's also remembered for his commitment to Israel through his support of Jewish National Fund. Proceeds of the many charitable gift annuities he established with JNF were used to plant a forest in Israel in honor of his parents, Matilda and Julius Fleischer.

Fleischer, who was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut, and passed away on July 21, 2015, in Palm Beach, was an ardent supporter of Israel, a JNF annuitant, and a member of World Chairman's Council, a society reserved for donors whose lifetime gifts total $1 million.

91-year-old veteran and great-grandpa wins Israel trip for Tu BiShvat

Gordon Mellish might just have a new favorite holiday.  

The 91-year old great-grandfather and WWII veteran from Clemmens, North Carolina, won the JNF Tu BiShvat Sweepstakes in celebration of the Jewish New Year for Trees.

Mellish is a retiree of the Martin Marietta Co. who also worked as a sewage treatment supervisor in Toledo, Ohio. He bought $2,000 worth of trees during the sweepstakes and said he supports Israel through Jewish National Fund regularly because he looks at Israel as a "flowering oasis." 

Saplings honoring lost life take root in Israeli soil, and sisters' hearts