Residents of the Gilad Farm in Samariare basking in the return of their electricity and water, thanks to a drive spearheaded by Arutz-7.
The farm, founded eight years ago on private Jewish property in the hills of Samaria, now boasts 23 families – who are now forced to receive electricity and water privately, at triple the normal cost. Their debts to the water and fuel truckers reached the breaking point earlier this month, well over $70,000, and finally, last week, they were left without water and electricity.
“Thanks to Arutz-7 and others who publicized our plight,” says Ilana Shimon, a member of the town secretariat, “many good Jews from around the country have called to contribute, and we are now able to at least pay for our day-to-day needs – though we are still not able to pay our accumulated debts; we hope that will come soon. People come and stop by, or even call just to say that they are with us and love us – and that too is a big help, letting us know that we are not alone in the battle.”
Ilana first spoke to Arutz-7’s Beni Toker last week, lamenting their lack of water and electricity for the two previous days, with no reprieve in sight. “When darkness falls, it’s not easy for the children,” she said. “We light candles… In general, things are not easy here; we always had periodic water and electricity outages, and there was a big fire here a few months ago that destroyed one and a half caravans, and of course the clashes with the Border Guard police when they try to evict us – and the fact that our ‘mayor,’ Itai Zar, together with another founding member, Uziel Shalev, are in jail for doing absolutely nothing…”
When she spoke with Arutz-7 today (Thursday), however, the story was quite different: “I want to thank all those who called and visited and donated. We now have water, and our generators are working not quite around the clock, but we’re able to make do: We leave them off from 11 at night until 6 in the morning, and then again in the afternoon for three or four hours… We hope that people will continue to show interest and help us with contributions, however, small, and that we will soon be able to begin repaying our debts.”
Ilana said that the Electric Company has been promising for two years to provide power, but has done nothing. Regarding water, “Piping was placed, but it was destroyed by Arabs, and nothing has been done to repair it…”
The Gilad Farm was founded in memory of Gilad Zar, a local security officer who was attacked by terrorists twice within a few months – and died of his wounds the second time. It is located on the southern side of the road between Kedumim and Yitzhar.
Although Ilana said she appreciates the “personal touch” and is happy to accept phone calls at 0525-583372 (from abroad, replace leading 0 with international access code and 972), she also agreed to provide her email address for those who prefer: info@yeshuv.org.
Next Thursday, Jan. 7, at 5 PM, a major event will be held at the farm, entitled: “Connecting the Nation of Israel in Israel and Abroad for Action and Momentum in the Face of the Government Decrees.” Among the speakers will be Knesset Members, representatives of ideological organizations, and Land of Israel activists. Participants are asked to come with “creative ideas.”