Do Anything and Everything in Your Power to Help

Two weeks after the October 7th terrorist attack in Israel, I took to a stage in Miami and in front of 500 people screamed into the microphone, “My name is Julia Pratt and I am proud to be Jewish.”

The events of October 7th shook me to my core. It was only two weeks after the bloodiest attack on the Jewish people since the Holocaust. Like so many of my peers, we could not keep silent. We kept waking up every day thinking to ourselves, this must be a nightmare, but it’s not. The days after the attack, I could barely move, I laid in bed arguing with antisemities on social media and watching the news in hopes of a seeing something positive.

I needed to channel my sadness, anger, confusion and fear into something that would actually make a difference for Israel and the Israeli people. I started by creating a Venmo campaign using my Instagram stories. In first 24 hours, I was able to raise over $6,000 from 76 different people. The money was then donated to The Greater Miami Jewish Federation’s Israel Emergency Fund where it wll go to assist the victims of terror and addres the immediate needs on the ground.

A few days later, I attended a Solidarity Rally at the Holocaust Memorial of Miami Beach with 3,000 members of the Miami community, including friends from my Birthright Israel and Onward networks. I brought along a friend of mine, Hector Santana, who isn’t Jewish but has always expressed to me his love for the Jewish people and everything we stand for. Many of us left the event feeling empowered, including Hector, who felt determined to do more to support his Jewish friends in the Miami community and Israel.

The next day, Hector called me and told me if I wanted to host a fundraiser for Israel that his company, SWARM, was willing to donate the use of an incredible venue the following week. With the help of friends from across the Miami community, I organized a fundraiser in under a week’s notice for almost 500 people.

What made the ISRAEL EMERGENCY FUNDraiser unique was the fact that it was free. Attended by Jews and non-Jews, this event was a safe space for people to come together and celebrate who they are, what they believe in, and make a difference. The money raised for the Israel Emergency Fund through the event came from the 18% of bar revenue that the Wynwood Marketplace generously donated from the night and the Silent Auction component. In the end, $41,000 was raised!

At the event, I spoke alongside Lindsay Spiegelman, a 2015 Birthright Israel Alum. Just 6 months ago, Lindsay and I were co-captains on the Young Leadership Bus for the Miami Mega Mission to Israel in honor of Israel’s 75th birthday.

Annie Roizman sang the Hatikvah and three-time Birthright Israel staffer, Noam Weinblatt, donated his DJing expertise for the event and played incredible Israeli music. For the night, I felt like I was back in Israel. Like I was back home.

In my opinion, the highlight of the night was hearing from Jack Waksal, a 99-year-old Holocaust survivor. Jack’s message was clear; “Never Again. We are Jews, and that is something NOBODY can take away from us!”

Building on Jack’s message, here is my message my fellow Jews, to any and all Birthright Israel, Onward, and Excel alums currently reading this from America who may have been feeling helpless like me:

“In this time of terrible darkness for our people and our homeland, be the light! Do anything and everything in your power to help Jews locally and globally as well as Israel. You are not alone. There are people, some who you might not even know personally, willing to lift you up. After planning this fundraiser, I know with every fiber of my being that we will come out of this tragic time stronger than ever.”

Each of us can do our part. We will prevail. Israel will prevail.