The Asher and Yonatan Palmer (z''l) Scholarship Fund

The Asher and Yonatan Fund is a Jewish response to terror and terrible tragedy. The Fund provides tuition scholarships and living expenses to families seeking to strengthen the Jewish enterprise in the Land of Israel through both Torah study and careers in the high-tech workforce of Israel.

Asher Palmer was a first generation native Israeli born of American parents, a hesder yeshiva graduate, Israeli Navy combat veteran, and new student at the college. On September 23, 2011, a Friday, he buckled his infant son Yonatan into the family car and drove from Kiryat Arba heading to Jerusalem to meet his pregnant wife at her parents' Jerusalem home, where they were to spend a family Shabbat. Just a few miles outside of Kiryat Arba, a terrorist gang attacked and murdered Asher and his son. Asher was one month shy of his 25th birthday.

Asher's life goal for himself and his family was to combine Torah and a career in the Israeli high-tech industry in order to strengthen Jewish life in the Land of Israel. The terrorists extinguished two young lives that day, but Asher's goal cannot be extinguished and it must be made manifold to defeat the evil that killed Asher and Yonatan. The Asher and Yonatan Fund does that.

The Fund supports needy college scholars who come from a yeshiva background and have families to support as they study for their degree and a place in Israel’s high-tech industry. After years of yeshiva study, very often coupled with military service, these students are at a later stage in their lives (married and with children) than non-yeshiva students. They must simultaneously cope with college and family responsibilities and the financial strains this can cause. This was Asher’s situation when he was murdered. The Fund helps to remove the financial strains, so that both college life and family life for these students can prosper.

Contributors to the Asher and Yonatan Fund join the fight against the evil that murdered the young college student Asher Palmer and his son Yonatan and memorialize their sacrifice.

Judi Srebro, International Relations Manager, The Azrieli College of Engineering Jerusalem