Over the past several months Samantha Katz of Upton has been preparing for her Bat Mitzvah. At first she was going to have a party like most girls but after some thought and some planning with her parents, Rabbi, and Hebrew School teachers she decided she would do something special in Israel.
Samantha said she decided she would twin her Bat Mitzvah because, “In Chabad, it’s a tradition to do a Mitzvah project.” Through an organization called The Chabad Terror Victims Project Samantha was paired up with a girl her age from Israel named Shira who suffered severe injuries in a bombing when she was 1.5 years old. As a result of her injuries Shira was left blind in one eye and suffered scarring and burns from the Shrapnel.
Samantha has set up a gofundme account called Chai-Raiser to raise funds for Shira and her family. “The Chai-Raiser signifies luck that will be given to Shira because Chai means life, good luck, and good luck to life,” said Samantha. The fundraiser was also dedicated to Samantha’s Grandmother who died this summer. In addition to the gofundme site Samantha held a fundraiser at a local ice skating rink and raised over $100.
Shira and Samantha have bonded during the project as pen pals and are now friends. Samantha is looking forward to meeting Shira in March when she travels to Israel.
Samantha is trying to create life where people have destroyed it.
If you would like learn more about Samantha and her Mitzvah project visit and the fundraiser link is here http://www.gofundme.com/50jj0s.
UPTON DAILY 
What a wonderful thing you are ding, Samantha. It looks like this will be deeply moving and purposeful. At such a young age, you understand how these crimes affect children and us all, and are doing something tangible to highlight horrors that come from fear, divisiveness and hate.