JHV: A4BGU’s Houston Benefit Highlights
JHV: A4BGU’s Houston Benefit Highlights
April 15, 2025
Jewish Herald Voice – At Americans for Ben-Gurion University’s (A4BGU) recent annual benefit, it was powerfully demonstrated how in the current post-October 7 reality, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) is serving as the anchor institution and engine for growth in its region. At the same time, BGU continues to exhibit the remarkable resilience that provides hope for the future of Israel and world Jewry.
On February 27 at Congregation Beth Yeshurun, attendees heard from Noa Shuker, a third-year medical student and student-reservist at BGU who embodies the University’s contributions to Israeli society at this time of urgent need.
Born and raised in Beer-Sheva, Shuker serves as a casualty officer in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Reserves, working at two major hospitals in the South – Soroka University Medical Center and Barzilai Medical Center. In this role, she and her colleagues are responsible for receiving wounded soldiers arriving from combat zones, particularly from Gaza. She handles notifying their families about their condition, and she provides support to both the injured soldiers and their families throughout the hospitalization process, addressing their social, mental and financial needs.
Shuker’s story strongly reflects how BGU is rising to the challenges of this moment by driving Israel’s remarkable resilience. The university has been disproportionately impacted by the October 7 atrocities, as compared to other higher education institutions in Israel, in terms of the number of students, faculty and staff who were killed, wounded, kidnapped and/or called to IDF reserve duty.
Yet, following the attacks, thousands of BGU students volunteered in hospitals throughout Israel, providing medical and psychological assistance to wounded Israelis and their families. Students and faculty members supported the families of IDF soldiers called up for reserve duty by looking after their children and maintaining their homes.
“A4BGU already understood long before October 7, but it is now clearer than ever to a growing number of Americans that BGU is paramount to the future of the South and all of Israel,” said Doug Seserman, A4BGU CEO. “As a vital part of Israel’s rebuilding and recovery efforts, the university’s response to the Hamas atrocities is showing just how vital the institution is to the remarkable resilience of the entire nation.”
During the Houston program, titled “Resilience and Hope: The Way Forward in the Aftermath of October 7th,” audience members also heard from world-renowned health expert Prof. Dorit Nitzan, chair of the Food Systems, One Health & Resilience Center at BGU.
“Like all of us, the BGU community has changed forever,” Consul General of Israel to the Southwest Livia Link-Raviv told the audience. “It has paid a terrible price since October 7, showed incredible agility and adjusted to take care of those on campus and around it, demonstrating the true meaning of being an inclusive community.”
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