Plans are underway to expand throughout the United States a walk-a-thon campaign on behalf of Israeli victims of Palestinian terrorism. The campaign is sponsored by the Israel Emergency Fund, which was organized in a grassroots effort following the terrorist murders of ten Israelis last October. A series of walk-a-thons in December in the New York area raised close to $35,000, which was personally distributed in Israel by IEF founders Neil and Susan Thalheim and Yaakov Haller to 22 families of victims.



A coalition of organizations, religious groups and individuals throughout the United States and in other countries are now working together to promote more walk-a-thons. At present, eleven events are scheduled for April 1 for the NY-NJ area, and plans for more are underway in other locations in the United States and Canada. Their stated goal: one million dollars for hundreds of maimed and wounded Israelis who require specialized medical, psychiatric and rehabilitative services as well as emotional support.



Officers of the Fund distribute the tax-deductible monies directly to the families of victims, in conjunction with Israeli social and medical services, psychiatrists and the Israeli Defense Forces. The activities of the Fund and the walk-a-thons are monitored by an outside oversight committee.