Last week, a group of American university students attended a life-altering presentation at the ZAKA office in Jerusalem. ZAKA is known in Israel and internationally as the premier volunteer organization whose mission is to save lives when possible and give dignity to the dead when plausible.

Yossi Fraenkel, Operations Officer of the International Units of ZAKA, gave the intensive hour and a half lecture to the students through the auspices Aish4AEPi. AEPi is a fraternity which aims to develop Jewish pride in its members.

“For nearly three years I have been sharing with visitors to Israel the incredible work that ZAKA volunteers perform,” Fraenkel explained to Breaking Israel News. “The talk is consistently mentioned as the highlight of people’s trips. Hearing about the extreme efforts and unique work that ZAKA does to save lives and honor the dead gives perspective on the value of human life.”

Through a multimedia presentation which includes pictures of ZAKA volunteers saving lives and collecting body parts and blood of the deceased and injured during terror attacks and natural disasters, participants experience ZAKA in action worldwide.

Fraenkel also demonstrates some of the life-saving equipment ZAKA uses, like drones and ambulances. and shows rockets which have been shot into Israel’s civilian communities.

“This lecture brings the importance of ZAKA’s work to life,” noted Fraenkel to Breaking Israel News. “Visitors from Birthright, schools, seminaries and universities are often unaware that ZAKA was one of the first search and rescue teams on the scene during disasters like the Haiti and Nepal earthquakes, the Thailand tsunami, hurricane Katrina, and, of course, terror attacks in Israel.”

Part of Fraenkel’s talk involves sharing the work of ZAKA’s many divisions. These include the units for Rapid Response, Divers, Jet Ski, Jeep, Canine, Emergency, Search and Rescue, and Chesed Shel Emet (Honor for the Dead).

Additionally, there is a Minority unit which includes Druze, Christians, Bedouins and Muslims. This unit was created with the full cooperation of each group’s religious and lay leaders in order to assure that customs and religious sensitivities are respected and performed.

The Aish4AEPi visit was arranged by Rabbi Chananel Weiner, the Director of Aish of Boston, Massachusetts, a national organization. Rabbi Weiner told Breaking Israel News that every trip he organizes to Israel includes a talk from ZAKA. “Students need to know that helping others is an integral part of life,” he shared. “Learning about ZAKA’s incredible efforts to save people and honor the dead captivates students and inspires them to want to help others as well.”

Noting that the reality on the ground during emergency situations in Israel and worldwide is something that should not be sugar coated, Rabbi Weiner expressed to Breaking Israel News, “I have brought students to the ZAKA presentation from a wide range of campuses including the University of Milwaukee, Baruch University, Harvard University, the University of California, Berkeley, University of California,Santa Barbara, Boston University, Northeastern University and more. When people meet ZAKA’s heroes, they understand the sacrifices they make for the Jewish people and the pains that they take in order to do what is right and just.”

There are several mottos under which ZAKA maintains its organization. To name a few, “ZAKA is ready for whatever tomorrow brings”; “Everyone is created in the image of God. Therefore, we honor everyone, whether they are dead or alive”; and the Talmudic verse, “He who saves a live, it is considered as if he saved an entire world.”

As a non-governmental organization, ZAKA runs completely on privately funded donations. “We are a reliable place to give charity,” Fraenkel told Breaking Israel News.

“We will help anyone, wherever they may be in the world, without considering their religion or cultural orientation. Through our team of dedicated volunteers who often work in the most gruesome and dangerous situations, we hope to show what the Jewish nation is all about, ‘Loving your neighbor as yourself.’”