Liam Harir

Congregation B’nai Amoona

“I chose this project because no one I knew was doing anything to help Israel, and I wanted a project that would help the Israeli people,” said Liam, son of Galit Lev-Harir and Elie Harir of Wildwood. Liam’s family has many friends and family members who have served or are currently serving and he recognized the crucial importance of the Israeli Defense Forces to the ongoing existence and security of the Jewish State. 

Liam worked with Shaving Israel, a non-profit, St. Louis- based organization. It provides Israeli soldiers with items they need in the field, but are not provided by the IDF. One-hundred percent of all donations go directly toward the purchase of items such as toiletries and other personal care items. “Shaving Israel recently supplied fleece jackets to a unit serving on Israel’s northern border where it gets very cold at night,” Liam said. 

Another item that Shaving Israel was sending to the soldiers was a personal hydration backpack, made in Israel, called a camel hump or shlookim. This item helps prevent dehydration. Liam included a note in his bar mitzvah invitation and posted on the Shaving Israel website requesting donations that would go towards the purchase of the camel humps. In the end, Liam raised $1,210 — enough to purchase 50. 

Joel Levy, president of Shaving Israel, said that Liam’s bar mitzvah project was spectacularly successful. “He leveraged the Shaving Israel website, which uses PayPal to gather gifts from across the country to buy a product called a camel hump (a three-gallon canteen) for a battalion of IDF members. We are so fortunate that Liam came to us on his own initiative.”

A student at Churchill Center & School, Liam said that it made him feel good to know he was helping Israeli soldiers.