Comedy for Koby December 2012 tour
Comedy for Koby December 2012 tourYissachar Ruas

The Comedy for Koby tour is back this month, for the tenth time, featuring top-tier North American comedians who perform in Israel.

The tour kicks off on Wednesday, May 22, and features shows in Beit Shemesh, Modiin, Jerusalem, Raanana, Tel Aviv and Gush Etzion.

Participating comics are Wayne Federman (Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Step Brothers), Ralph Harris (Late Night with Conan O’Brien, Seinfeld, Parenthood), Dennis Regan (Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Late Show with David Letterman) and Avi Liberman (Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson).

Proceeds from Comedy for Koby benefit The Koby Mandell Foundation, an organization founded in memory of Koby Mandell, a young teenager who was killed by terrorists while hiking with his friend, Yosef Ishran, near his home in 2001.

The two friends had gone for a walk in Wadi Tekoa. Terrorists bound the boys and beat them to death with stones.

When the two did not return home until evening, an all-night search began for them, but the two bodies were only found the next day, hidden under a pile of stones three feet high. Koby was murdered at the age of 13. He is survived by his parents, two brothers and a sister.

Koby’s parents, Seth and Sherri Mandell, started the Koby Mandell Foundation to assist other families coping with the bitter loss of a loved one to terror and since that time, thousands of Israelis have benefited from their services.

The premiere program of the organization is Camp Koby, which allows siblings of victims of terror other tragic losses to enjoy the summer camp experience in an environment specifically designed for their social and emotional needs.