DENVER (KDVR) — Denver metro-area residents are working to help raise money to support Israel in the midst of these latest attacks.

The latest sights coming from Israel are hitting home for Denver resident Yaron Marcus.

“These are people that I know personally and care about and I am fearful for their safety,” Marcus tells FOX31.

Marcus lived in Israel as a child. He tells FOX31 that his parents were founding members of Kibbutz Ketura in 1973.

He said he takes yearly trips back to visit family still living in Israel and to volunteer with the Jewish National Fund as the VP of Fundraising for Jewish National Fund-USA Mountain States.

“I’ve been to these towns, I’ve heard the sirens, we’ve heard rockets, we’ve heard the thuds and booms in the distance,” Marcus said, adding “ It’s crazy to think that that this is all happening one more time yet again.” 

In the last week, two of Marcus’ cousins have been called back to serve. 

“My cousin, who’s 45 years old, got called back into duty, called back into service, and is saying goodbye to his three children as he is embarking to go fight for his country and be in harm’s way,” Marcus said. “I feel such a sense of pride that my family is rallying to the cause. I wish that I could do more than just raise money and raise awareness here. But, you know, everybody has to have their role and it’s going to take all of us.”

Jewish National Fund-USA has mobilized to raise funds critical to meeting the immediate crisis. The organization has activated its Situation Room and its team is on the ground and in the streets of Israel, gaining information about the immediate needs of the local communities it supports.

“Within about 2 hours of the announcement of these attacks taking place, we set up an operations center for us to map out what the emerging needs are going to be,” Rick Krosnick, Jewish National Fund-USA’s Chief Development Officer, tells FOX31, adding “Within about 24 hours, Jewish National Fund evacuated about 4000 residents.”

Pictures show the care packages put together for those evacuating with nothing but the shirts on their back. 

“The expression ‘it takes a village’ could never be more true than in a wartime situation like this,” Marcus said. 

Jewish National Fund-USA is also prepared to assist communities in the north as needed. They have requisitioned portable bomb shelters for Kiryat Shmona, another close partnership, and continue to assess needs on the ground as they arise. To support the campaign, you can click here.