Pre-October 7, her job at UJIA involved overseeing initiatives to help close the socio-economic gaps in Israel and exploring ways that UK philanthropists could assist with this. These included partnering with Israeli organisations which supported youth at risk, running UJIA’s Si3 scheme, which invests in social impact enterprises, and looking at what capital projects the charity could help fund.
Then October 7 happened, and as she modestly puts it, the work “ratcheted up”.
Emily Pater (second from right) at Pitchon Lev, a UJIA emergency appeal partner, which helps Israelis with food and basic needs (Photo: Blake Ezra Photography)(C) Blake Ezra Photography 2023 Not to be reproduced without written permission.
She is now a frequent visitor at Kibbutz Be’eri, one of the kibbutzim which bore the brunt of so much devastation from the Hamas terrorist atrocity. Over 100 members of this kibbutz, were murdered and 31 taken hostage, some of whom are still held captive.
“It doesn’t matter how many times you go to the kibbutz, but it’s devastating every time. Your mind can’t process what the eyes see. It’s like there is a dissonance,” says Emily.
The kibbutz’s dental clinic, where five people were murdered on October 7, has just been demolished as its walls were so riddled with bullet holes.
UJIA is now raising funds to rebuild the kibbutz’s education centre, which, says Emily, is “the jewel in the crown of the kibbutz. If we don’t rebuild the preschool, young families won’t return to the kibbutz. Rebuilding signals to residents and the region that there is a future there.”
While a few people have moved back to the kibbutz, most of them are still in temporary accommodation near Be’er Sheva, many still in a state of deep trauma. Despite this, Emily says that the kibbutz leaders “are committed to building back and building back stronger”.
As soon as news came through of the terrorist attacks, UJIA launched an emergency campaign to offer basic financial assistance to evacuees and to those who, perhaps due to their age, decided not to evacuate, but found themselves in places where infrastructure had shut down and shops were closed.
As well as funding trauma therapy and supporting small businesses at risk of closure, most recently, the campaign has been providing food to people living in the north just below the evacuation zone.
Emily has also been overseeing UJIA’s efforts to fund education services for children who, in the north and south, have been unable to attend regular school. The charity has funded pop-up schools, lessons in shelters and after-school activities.
"Thousands of kids have been impacted by the war. They have been evacuated and had to fight to maintain a routine. If they have been lucky, they have been integrated into the local school, but not all of them have been able to make that transition.”
Earlier this month, over 100 educational institutions reopened in the north of Israel, enabling nearly two-thirds of pupils evacuated from the area to go back to school. Yet, the disruption to education means that some students are behind, so UJIA is focused on “closing the gaps” by working with partners to provide extra lessons so older pupils can take their Bagrut exams, the Israeli equivalent to A-levels.
Emily Pater helping out on Kibbutz Be'eri (Photo: UJIA)[Missing Credit]
Asked how October 7 and its aftermath have impacted her personally, Emily says: “Everyone in the country has been affected, and the extent to which depends on how close someone is to events which took place.
“I do have friends and people in our neighbourhood and community whose kids were kidnapped and murdered and soldiers who have died. The impact is felt every day.”
The mum of four says it saddens her that her children have been exposed to “things kids this age shouldn’t be exposed to. When we were growing up, we never heard people talking about rockets or hostages.”
But twenty-four years after making aliyah, despite the last 18 months being the hardest Emily can remember, there are no thoughts of leaving. “Israel is a complex society, and the past year and a half hasn’t always been easy, but this is where we are and where we are committed to be. People are hopeful that there are better times ahead. Being surrounded by lots of threats is very scary, but we have to remain optimistic.”
