BEN-GURION UNIVERSITY | THE WAY FORWARD

In recent years, the State of Israel has been tested like never before. The horrific Hamas attack on October 7th and the death, destruction, loss, and pain in the wake of the attack, along with the prolonged war on multiple fronts and multiple bouts of incoming missiles from Iran have left their mark on all of us. Members of the BGU community were evacuated from their homes, killed, held hostage, and rescued. Many among us suffered the loss of family members, friends, professors, and colleagues. The homes of some were struck by missiles. Our labs, teaching facilities, and sports arena were struck by missiles. Numerous buildings on the Marcus Family Campus were damaged. It is still hard to believe and shocking to recount. Our students, faculty members, and staff are still performing reserve duty, even after many of them have been called up numerous times and performed hundreds of days of service. Students who are entering the third year of their studies this fall have only had the experience of being students during wartime, having to both juggle their coursework with their own reserve duty or their partner’s, and focus on their studies while consumed with worry over the safety of those in harm’s way. And yet they persevere, diving back into their studies again and again. They are truly champions. DONOR IMPACT IN EMERGENCIES

As are our donors. Through it all the extended BGU family of donors and friends has been by our side, supporting, uplifting, and inspiring us with their generosity and supportive words and actions. Our supporters unhesitatingly responded to our two emergency campaigns, collectively raising millions of dollars for emergency aid, in each case, demonstrating that strong and united we will prevail. Donors from around the world have provided emergency support for evacuees, emergency grants for students, funds to support our rebuilding efforts, psychological services, resilience initiatives, security needs, and so much more. With each gift we were reminded anew of the strength of our community and the magnitude of our partnership. All of us at BGU have been buoyed and enriched by it. In this way, the Way Forward Campaign and the unexpected two emergency campaigns have enabled BGU to flourish in periods of routine, war, and uncertainty. We thank you for enabling us to go from strength to strength, ensuring that regardless of the circumstances, the future looks bright at BGU.

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