At a moving ceremony held at the Kosel, initiated by Yad Sarah, dozens of elderly people celebrated their bar/bas mitzvah, which they did not celebrate on time, all putting on tefilin and getting an aliyah to the Torah, followed by a seudas mitzvah.

IDF soldiers were on hand to celebrate with them and their families in the Old City. The soldiers sang and cheered after they visited the Center of the Chain of Generations. They music escorted them down to the Kosel.

There was great excitement on the faces of the guests of honor. At the end of the tefilos, they danced in a circle around the stage, their eyes streaming with tears. “How long have I not been at the Kosel, what right is it to be here at my age?” Said one survivor. Another survivor added, “This is a life-time experience, and there is usually no one to take me to the Kosel, and you did it with such an impressive ceremony.”

The survivors took part in the festive seuda during which Rabbi Yaakov Weiner, the Rav of Yad Sarah, addressed the event. His words were followed by Rabbi Rabinowitz, who shared his emotions over being a part of such a meaningful event, one of the most meaningful he has seen at the Kosel.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)