17-year-old Reut Amichai will be the youngest of the ceremonial torch lighters at this year's Israeli Independence Day opening ceremony on Mount Herzl in Jerusalem. She will light the torch in the name of the Shomer Hachadash organization, and ahead of the event, she stopped by the Israel National News studio to talk about the organization and her excitement ahead of the ceremony.
Reut resides in Neta in the Lahish region and is a student at the Amit Kama high school in Yeruham.
Reut talks about Shomer Hachadash's mission: protecting state-owned lands in various ways, whether by demonstrating presence, agricultural work, or advocacy to connect the general public with the land.
"The organization is for anyone who wants to help the farmers. Agriculture is not a private business. It is a national matter," she says and recalls the reactions of the farmers when they see the younger generation enlisting to help them. "There's nothing greater than seeing the light in the farmer's eyes," she says.
Regarding her work, she says she's a member of the "sucker family," a group of high schoolers the farmers call in as needed. In addition, she is part of the organization's leadership project, which was dedicated in memory of the original Hashomer organization founder Alexander Zaid.
Reut invites more youth to join the organization "to be part of a national mission because the state lands are what protects us." The call also went out on social media, and she says that a large force of young people is spread out across the country. "The youth will be here in a few years, and it's important that we're part of the zionist mission."
Reut sees the intersectoral work of the youth as a social opportunity to overcome the conflicts that the adults are leading. "We will be the ones who will lead the country in a few years, and this is an opportunity to unify and change direction, to talk and to love, to change the discourse to unity and to become one group."
Reut was notified that she would be lighting the torch by Yoel Zilberman, the organization's CEO. "It was exciting, a bit shocking. When I was out in the field, working, on a day that I was hot and sweating, I did not expect to be lighting a torch on Mount Herzl," she says and adds that in the text that she will read prior to lighting the torch, she intends to convey messages of unity and love for the land.
Reut also mentions the terror attack in which Maia and Rena Dee and their mother Lucy were murdered. Reut knew Maia Dee from school, and Rina volunteered in the Shomer Hachadash organization. "For the last four-five months, Rina was a member of Team Nachman of the Gush Etzion Sucker Family. She took a large part in the organization's work, and the organization saw it as an opportunity to grow. Last Thursday and Friday, there was an activity that Rina was signed up for, and instead of canceling it, it was decided that we would continue the activity in her memory." The organization intends to hold additional activities in Rina's memory.
Watch the full interview (in Hebrew):