Samuel Willenberg, the "last witness" of the Treblinka death camp, was buried on Monday. Willenberg was a man whose image, courage, heroism and life story could have been written by a Hollywood screenwriter. Willenberg was one of only 67 Jews who survived Treblinka, thus regaining their lives and freedom and becoming the sole living witnesses to the horrors that transpired. These witnesses took it upon themselves to make sure future generations did not forget what happened. Willenberg had already become a symbol during his life, and he is now a legend after his death. President Reuven Rivlin and top government officials came to his funeral to accompany him on his final journey and pay their last respects. Their attendance was a manifestation of the Jewish people's oath to pass on the memories of the Holocaust and its lessons from generation to generation. And it also represented the rebirth of the Jewish people via the establishment of the State of Israel. To our great sorrow, Willenberg became one of the thousand Holocaust survivors who pass away every month. It will not be so long before the last survivor is gone. Those who were young children during the Holocaust are over 70 now, and those who survived those years as teenagers have already passed the age of 80. Many Holocaust survivors die lonely and neglected. People who suffered the most terrible of human atrocities and succeeded in rebuilding their lives in Israel are now sick and impoverished, and they feel humiliated by the way the state and its institutions have treated them. I call on Israeli government ministers not to miss the small window of opportunity that, despite still being open, is rapidly closing. Our duty is to make sure the 180,000 Holocaust survivors in Israel live out the rest of their lives in dignity. The resources allocated to their care have been split among numerous bodies, causing many survivors to fall between the cracks, unable to receive this well-deserved aid from the state. We have an obligation to ease the lives of Holocaust survivors in their final years. We must ensure their welfare, provide them with medical treatment and alleviate their loneliness. We will not be able to do this in another 10 or 20 years. We must do it today. Let's avoid a situation in which we have to ask ourselves how we could have forsaken Willenberg's friends. May his memory be a blessing. Zeev Bielski is mayor of Raanana and has been honored for his work in support of Holocaust survivors.
