Hadara Ishak's grandmother made aliyah to Israel after watching her brother killed by the Russian army. Ishak's father made aliyah as the sole survivor of his family from the Holocaust. However, for Ishak, her family's history has come full circle, and celebrating Yom Hazikaron this year is a brutal reminder of their journey.

In January, Ishak lost her cousin Asaf Betan, a 20-year old member of the Israeli army, and this Yom Hazikaron is bound to be an emotional one for Ishak as she remembers Asaf in happier times and the mission for which he fought.

Asaf was killed protecting what he loved. Ishak explained, "My cousin decided to follow in the family's footsteps in the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) to join the elite units in order to fight for what he believed was right."

When asked about this year's Yom Hazikaron, Ishak said, "It's raw. It's your flesh. You remember the last happy day and you know that from that day on it's never going to be the same. I was in Israel a week before he was killed and my whole family was together at a gathering laughing and eating and joking and happy and the family will never, ever, ever be the same."

In memory of Asaf, Ishak will join an Israeli choir at Or Veshalom on Yom Hazikaron. "I have been asked to sing with this particular choir for the last seven years, but I have always turned them down, and this year I feel that I need to do something in addition."

Ishak and friend Sharon Levison chair the Chaver L'Chayal (Friend of a Soldier) program. The program helps students understand Israeli-Arab tensions while packing "goody" bags for soldiers. Each bag includes a letter from an Atlanta youth and kosher chocolates. This year, the group sent 2,000 pounds in letters and chocolates to Israeli soldiers.

Ishak's pride in Israel has led her to volunteer with the Federation, Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta and the Israeli Consulate in the Yom Ha'atzmaut celebration at the Zaban Park on May 7. "With the loss of my cousin I feel very strongly that all of us as Jews should celebrate the independence of the State of Israel and still strive for a happier tomorrow in a Jewish homeland."