Interviewer: How are you? What are you doing here?
Interviewer: Dennis, I am so sorry if I startled you, but simply—you know—at Leket Israel, they don’t stop saying: “Dennis, Dennis, Dennis, Dennis.” So I said, “What does Dennis actually do?”
Interviewer: So, Dennis, where are you taking me right now?
Dennis: Right now, we are going to the Amuta (Non-profit organization/Soup Kitchen). We’ll unload food there, and you’ll see how it works. What exactly we do, where it arrives, and in what condition it arrives.
Interviewer: So Dennis, how did you actually end up working at Leket Israel?
Dennis: On my first day, I was really proud that I brought the food to the non-profits. But what moved me was the day after; when I arrived there, people came, and I saw them sitting, eating, receiving hot food. That moved me very, very much. And then I said: “This is what I need.”
Interviewer: So what does your day look like? What time do you wake up?
Dennis: We start work at 8:00 in the morning. We wash/check the vehicle, because it must be clean and organized. We work with army bases; from there, we collect hot food. I handle no less than 500 portions a day.
Interviewer: You collect 500 portions a day?
Dennis: Correct.
Interviewer: And then the non-profits transfer it to supported families? To specific people who receive a hot meal?
Dennis: Correct. We have an excellent team. They come to work with all their heart. Always helping each other. Every day is an emotional day like this.
Interviewer: What did life look like after October 7th?
Dennis: We didn’t stop for even a single day. We continued working. In my truck, for example, even now there is a flak jacket and a helmet. In the first days, it was to the point where we would put on the vest and helmet, arriving at places that were generally dangerous. But for us—for the organization, for Leket Israel, and for me personally—we had to rescue the food. No matter what happens, we have to help people.
Dennis: And when you see the people every day—the needy—coming and receiving what they need, then your heart is calm. You know you did something that day. You did something special, and that you saved—maybe if one can say—lives too. It gives people a lift/mood.
Interviewer: Wow. Dennis. You move me.
(Voiceover / Narration)
Narrator: Leket Israel’s field staff are a central part of the system that drives the organization forward. They are our face in the field, connecting the act of rescuing excess food to those who need it. Thanks to them, we reach every farmer, every food donor, volunteers, non-profits, and every home.
Narrator: Join us in our work. Visit the Leket Israel website and look for us on social networks, and together we will continue to create change.