500 meals for the hungry and homeless: Israeli embassy champions ‘Dugo Day’
Day of social action to celebrate Holocaust survivor David 'Dugo' Leitner, who invites people to eat falafel every 18 January as a symbol of Nazi resistance.
The Embassy of Israel and London’s largest food redistribution charity donated 500 falafel meals to the homeless to honour Holocaust survivor David ‘Dugo’ Leitner.
Marking its third annual “Operation Dugo” celebrations, the embassy sent a team of people to volunteer at The Felix Project in Park Royal, Brent. ‘Dugo Day’ has become a huge movement centred around social action and giving food to those going hungry.
Known by his nickname ‘Dugo’, on 18 January 1945, 14-year-old David Leitner was forced by the Nazis, alongside 60,000 other Jews, to leave Auschwitz-Birkenau and walk for three days through snow.
Underfed, exhausted and freezing, Leitner says it was dreaming of his mother’s cooking and in particular bilkalach (small bread rolls from his home in Hungary) that got him through the ordeal.
Surviving the death march, when many others did not, in 1949 Dugo moved to Israel and discovered falafel at the Mahane Yehuda food market in Jerusalem. The taste brought back memories of his childhood and now every 18 January he enjoys them in celebration of his journey, freedom and liberation.
Deputy Ambassador Oren Marmorstein said: “We are proud to be a part of Operation Dugo for the third year running, this time teaming up with the Felix Project to ensure that Dugo’s memory continues to have a tangible, charitable impact. Operation Dugo was launched with the idea that no one should ever go hungry, and by teaming with such an incredible charity, we have seen this vision come to life for the day across the streets of London.”
Jane Byam Shaw, trustee and co-founder of the Felix Project, said: “We were very moved to hear the story of David Leitner’s survival and to understand the inspiration behind Dugo Day, which has grown into an annual event that resonates with our own mission to ensure that no-one should ever go hungry. The meals will be appreciated and enjoyed by all who receive them through our network of charity partners in London.”
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