The Consulate General of Israel in Shanghai held a special Thanksgiving Planting event on May 17 in front of the White Horse Cafe of the Shanghai Jewish Refugee Museum.

The event aims to thank those who donated medical products to Israel during the coronavirus epidemic, according to Limor Gadi, consul of Israel in Shanghai. She also told the audience that during WWII, the locals in Hongkou district—where the Shanghai Jewish Refugee Museum is located—helped the Jews make a home and a life in Shanghai in extremely difficult circumstances. While commemorating the past, Ms. Gadi hopes the friendship between China and Israel can last forever.

This March, when the number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 patients in Israel has kept rising, Benjamin Peng, the founder of the Israel Plan Organization, was always thinking to himself, what can we do for Israel? With the support of the Consulate General of Israel in Shanghai, Peng initiated a donation drive to raise money and medical supplies. By the end of the next day, nearly one billion yuan (about 140,819 USD) had been raised and he got many anti-epidemic supplies from Chinese enterprises, organizations and folk groups, such as China Construction Harbour and Engineering Bureau Group, Hengyuanxiang Group, Shuntong Group, and the Tel Aviv University Chinese Alumni Association.

“I felt the friendship between our two countries and that helping each other is kind of a nature of Chinese and Israeli people,” said Peng, who was deeply impressed by his Chinese fellow’s action of donation.“That also inspires us young people to pass on this spirit of mutual help.” He also expects that the mutual help between China and Israel can benefit mankind.

“The friendship between China and Israel dates back to a long time ago, and the Shanghai Jewish Refugee Museum is a witness,” said Chen Jian, curator of the museum. He also mentioned thousands of Jews prayedat the Western Wall in Jerusalem, for the sake of China and in effort to stopthe epidemic, when the coronavirus situation was serious in China. He hopes the seeds people planted in front of the White Horse Cafeof the Shanghai Jewish Refugee Museum, as a symbol of hope and friendship, can grow strong in China.

(A sculpture in front of the cafe shows the strong relationship between Shanghai people and Jews during WWII.)

(Photos: Ding Wenqi)