Seth Togal reflects on his experience at the Partnership2Gether Veteran Exchange Program breakfast.
This past week, I was invited to participate in the Minneapolis Jewish Federation’s “Partnership2Gether” (P2G) Veteran Exchange Program breakfast.
About 50 members of the Twin Cities Jewish community met at Jewish Family and Children’s Service of Minneapolis’ office to hear six IDF (Israel Defense Force) soldiers share their personal stories of resilience, unity and service, since the October 7th attack.
Mark S. told our group that his youngest daughter was born 15 days after the Oct 7th attack, and within three days he left for active duty. He shared that four months of duty felt like multiple eternities. In the 18 days between the attack and his active duty beginning, his business was turned into a calming space for the traumatized and a donation center for supplies for soldiers.
He shared about the moment he realized that the burden he carried was PTSD, and for the sake of his wife, daughters and himself, he needed to seek immediate help.
It’s not that the military wasn’t prepared to help their soldiers deal with PTSD, it’s that everything happened so fast, and on such a large scale that no one had time to process the events. The IDF refers to PTSD as a “transparent injury,” because it’s not always visible to others. In Israel and in the IDF there is no stigma associated with PTSD because everyone suffers from it.
The strength he and his fellow soldiers possess, not just to protect their people and country, but to share their stories with strangers, is a strength I admittedly will never know…or hope to never know. And now, it is not “P2G”, but “PTG”: Post Trauma Growth – and we’re all a part of it.
I’m grateful to Eilat Harel at the Minneapolis Jewish Federation, the P2G participants and everyone involved for putting this program together. It’s an experience I’ll not soon forget.
“When you listen to a witness, you become a witness.” – Elie Wiesel
