Surfside tragedy survivors honor Israeli rescuers in an emotional Holy Land reunion

Daniel Shoer Roth
·4 min read
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Days after the Surfside condo collapse, people kept strong with hope that their loved ones would be found in the rubble. An Israeli military rescue force, among the teams on the site, combed through the pile day and night.

Families watching anxiously formed a bond with the Israeli team.

Every day, the Israeli National Rescue Unit met with the relatives. The team learned what rooms residents slept in and, in turn, kept loved ones apprised of the search process.

Then on Shabbat, the day of rest for faithful Jews, they shared a meal and their grief.

“The empathy they showed was very therapeutic for the families,” recalled Elise Scheck Bonwitt, a cousin of Jeff Berezdivin, whose daughter Deborah died in the Surfside tragedy along with her boyfriend, Ilan Naibryf.

College-aged couple Deborah Berezdivin and Ilan Naibryf. Both perished in the Champlain Towers South collapse in Surfside Florida.
College-aged couple Deborah Berezdivin and Ilan Naibryf. Both perished in the Champlain Towers South collapse in Surfside Florida.

In all, the collapse of Champlain Towers South on June 24, 2021, killed 98 people.

“Many of the people were Jewish and there was a degree of comfort that the Israelis were working with the Miami rescue team,” Scheck Bonwitt told the Miami Herald and el Nuevo Herald.

Col. Golan Vach, who heads the Israeli Defense Forces famed National Rescue Unit, receives a plaque from Elise Scheck Bonwitt, who lost family in the Surfside tragedy.
Col. Golan Vach, who heads the Israeli Defense Forces famed National Rescue Unit, receives a plaque from Elise Scheck Bonwitt, who lost family in the Surfside tragedy.

Nearly two years after the tragedy, a delegation of 800 Jews from the Greater Miami Jewish Federation ended their mission to Israel this past week with an emotional appreciation ceremony for the Surfside Israeli rescue crew members, who were reunited with survivors of the tragedy and relatives of those killed.

The Israel Mega Mission traveled to the Holy Land for the celebration of Israel’s 75th anniversary, and for its 800 participants to learn about the programs that the Federation funds in the Jewish state.

The strong ties between the Miami Jewish community and the Israeli people “played out in a startling and unexpected way” during the Surfside catastrophe, Ariel Bentata, president of the Federation’s Board of Directors, said at the closing ceremony at Ronit Farm, near Tel-Aviv.

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Shortly after the condo collapse, Federation President and CEO Jacob Solomon received calls from then-Minister of Diaspora Affairs Nachaman Shai and former Prime Minister Yair Lapid. They offered help from the IDF’s National Rescue Unit, led by Col. Golan Vach.

Col. Golan Vach, who heads the Israeli Defense Forces National Rescue Unit, speaks to a delegation of 800 Jews from Miami in Ronit Farm, near Tel Aviv, on Thursday, Apr. 27, 2023. To his left are Elise Scheck Bonwitt, who lost family in the Surfside tragedy, and Ofi Osin-Cohen, who lived in the collapsed building.
Col. Golan Vach, who heads the Israeli Defense Forces National Rescue Unit, speaks to a delegation of 800 Jews from Miami in Ronit Farm, near Tel Aviv, on Thursday, Apr. 27, 2023. To his left are Elise Scheck Bonwitt, who lost family in the Surfside tragedy, and Ofi Osin-Cohen, who lived in the collapsed building.

Accompanied by members of his unit on Thursday, Vach received a plaque from the Federation, which also made a contribution to his military unit in appreciation. The inscription of the plaque features a popular quote from Israel’s first prime minister, David Ben-Gurion: “The State of Israel will prove itself not by material wealth, nor by military might or technical achievements, but by its moral character and human values.”

In an interview with the Herald, Col. Vach noted that the Miami delegation’s gesture of appreciation during the visit “symbolizes their unwavering commitment to the State of Israel,” he added.

Members of the Israeli rescue crew that came to Miami to aid after the Surfside condo collapse, hug each other during a moving ceremony where the Miami Jewish community honored their valor and determination.
Members of the Israeli rescue crew that came to Miami to aid after the Surfside condo collapse, hug each other during a moving ceremony where the Miami Jewish community honored their valor and determination.

The Israeli rescuers were in Surfside between June 27 and July 11, 2021. Although they didn’t find survivors at the condo site, “we knew that they would do their best to recover the bodies and bring them as quickly as possible to their relatives,” said Scheck Bonwitt, 53, who traveled to Israel with her family and members of her congregation, Beth Torah, near Aventura.

Rabbi Yossi Harlig, director of Chabad of Kendall and chaplain for the Miami-Dade County Police Department, kept in close contact with Jewish relatives and rescuers during the days of searching. He said the Israeli rescuers “understand that the body is sacred and that each part must be recovered to be buried as soon as possible.”

Miami rabbis (left to right) Fred Klein, Mario Rojzman, Yossi Harlig and Eliot Pearlson light a candle in memory of the 98 people who perished in the Surfside tragedy.
Miami rabbis (left to right) Fred Klein, Mario Rojzman, Yossi Harlig and Eliot Pearlson light a candle in memory of the 98 people who perished in the Surfside tragedy.

“They worked around the clock to get it done,” said Rabbi Harling, who, along with Miami rabbis Mario Rojzman, Eliot Pearlson and Fred Klein, lit a candle in memory of the 98 people who perished in the collapse. Then Rabbi Rojzman recited the Mourner’s Kaddish, one of the most sacred rituals observed by Jews.

Helping new immigrants in Israel

New immigrants to Israel who receive aid from Miami Jewish donors are greeted by Lily Serviansky, Federation General Campaign Chair.
New immigrants to Israel who receive aid from Miami Jewish donors are greeted by Lily Serviansky, Federation General Campaign Chair.

Various programs supported by the Jewish Federation of Greater Miami through the Jewish Agency for Israel help new immigrants in the Holy Land. Three of them, together with their families, attended the closing ceremony, where a video was shown with their moving testimonials and their gratitude expressed to the Miami donors.

Another poignant highlight was the testimony of a young man from Miami, Jonah Kafka, grandson of Holocaust survivors, who decided to enlist in the IDF even though he is alone in Israel. His family also participated in the Mission.

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“Jonah, I know your grandfather would be so proud of you, as we all are,” Lily Serviansky, Federation General Campaign Chair, told him. She noted that his grandfather, Herbie Karliner, was a pillar of the Holocaust survivor community in Miami.

The young soldier could not hold back his tears.

A lone Israeli soldier from Miami, Jonah Kafka, gets emotional during the closing ceremony of the Miami Mega Mission to Israel. His grandfather, Herbie Karliner, was a pillar of Miami’s Holocaust survivors community.
A lone Israeli soldier from Miami, Jonah Kafka, gets emotional during the closing ceremony of the Miami Mega Mission to Israel. His grandfather, Herbie Karliner, was a pillar of Miami’s Holocaust survivors community.

Daniel Shoer Roth, an editor for el Nuevo Herald, is participating in the Greater Miami Federation’s mission to Israel and is reporting on the delegation and events.