A direct hit by two Iranian missiles on June 15 caused an estimated $500 million worth of damage to the campus of Israel’s Weizmann Institute of Science, in Rehovot, Israel. They destroyed a major cancer research building and a chemistry building that was still under construction. Four days later, Iran targeted the area of Beersheba’s Ben-Gurion University campus, directly hitting its teaching hospital, the Soroka Medical Center. A surgical wing was hit, injuring about 70 people, including some patients. The impact also damaged at least half of the university’s 60 buildings. Meanwhile, a new strike just yesterday on June 24 in the city killed four Israelis, when the missile hit an apartment complex, rendering many more university staff homeless. Since 2003, the Canadian fundraising chapters of Weizmann and Ben-Gurion have sent over $320 million in donations to these two universities in Israel. The gifts purchased research equipment, built labs, funded scholarships and in some cases, had buildings or departments named after them, including the Schwartz Reisman Institute for Theoretical Physics at Weizmann and the Azrieli National Centre for Autism at Ben-Gurion. Seeing the scenes of destruction has been heartbreaking for Canadian philanthropists. But after the initial shock of the last weeks, Canadian supporters are now swinging into action, launching emergency fundraising campaigns to rebuild—even, as they say, if it takes years. On today’s episode of North Star, The CJN’s flagship news podcast, host Ellin Bessner checks in with Susan Stern, CEO of Weizmann Canada, and Andrea Freedman, the CEO of Ben-Gurion University Canada.

Related links

• Learn more about Weizmann Institute Canada’s emergency fundraising recovery fund.
• Find out what Ben-Gurion University’s Canadian branch is doing to raise funds to rebuild labs and classrooms.
• How some Canadian wings of Israeli-Jewish charities quietly, and not so quietly, launched appeals for funds after hundreds of Iranian missiles targeted the Jewish State since June 13, in The CJN.

Credits

• Host and writer: Ellin Bessner (@ebessner)
• Production team: Zachary Kauffman (senior producer), Andrea Varsany (producer), Michael Fraiman (executive producer)
• Music: Bret Higgins

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