Days (and Nights) of Action, Can't Keep a Good Jewish Activist Down

Last week we attended an amazing book launch at the Menachem Begin Heritage Center.  For forty 40 plus years the Jewish activists of Herut/Likud Great Britain haven't given up.  According to the calendars, they maybe forty years older, but I couldn't see any signs of age, besides greyer hair on some.

We became privileged to know them, when my husband was chosen to be the first shaliach sent to work with their Betar Zionist youth movement from 1975-77.  We lived in London during that time.  And since our return to Israel, some of them have made aliyah, and we've remained very close friends.

During the time we were in London, we joined their efforts to free Soviet Jewry, especially Natan Sharansky who had been jailed by the Soviets.  His wife Avital became a frequent visitor to London and they were both at the book launch to thank the late George Evnine, Eric Graus and others for all of the help they gave during that long, painful struggle to free Sharansky and see him safe and sound in Israel.

Natan and Avital Sharansky with Rosaly Evnine

Eric Graus, autographing a book, with Natan Sharansky

Natan Sharansky autographing a book.

There was a massive crowd of people in attendance. 

Joe, on the left (of the picture)

The event and book, of over six hundred pages, jam-packed with photos, articles and programs and more, was a labor labour of love done by Joe Gellert who has worked with Eric Graus for decades running Herut-Likud, Great Britain.




Other speakers, besides Natan Sharansky, were, Minister Without Portfolio Benny Begin, former MK and Minister Moshe Arens, Eric Graus, Joe Gellert and Steve Rockman.

This was an amazing reunion attended by many British immigrants, who had been members of Herut/Likud and Betar, in addition to some still living in England who came to Israel specially to attend the event.  There were also children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren of the ever dedicated selfless activists.