Thousands March in New York in Sunday's Celebrate Israel Parade

Thousands of marchers and observers turned up on Fifth Avenue on Sunday to celebrate Israel's 70th anniversary.

As CBS News reported,

The parade encouraged lots of blue and white to flow along Fifth Avenue. The celebration, with music and cheering, observed the 70th anniversary of the founding of Israel. The parade started at 57th Street and stretched north to 74th.

Ambassador Dani Dayan, consul general of Israel in New York, told CBS2’s Dave Carlin he was eager to help put the day in historical perspective.

 “When you compare where we were 70 years ago from the ashes of the holocaust, it’s simply miracle what we’ve achieved in 70 years and we want to share that celebration,” Dayan said.

Talia Hazan of Kew Gardens said Queens is where she was born but Israel, which she visits often, feels like home.

“It’s just like a very happy country. The vibes there and the energy is so bright and happy,” Hazan said.

The same could be said of Sunday’s parade, celebrating Israel.

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Celebrate Israel's Role in Your Life at Sunday's Celebrate Israel Parade in New York

Do you serve cherry tomatoes in your salads? Do you use a flash drive to backup and transfer files from your computer? Do you use instant text messaging on your smartphone? Do you have anti-virus software installed on your computer? 

Do you use Waze, the software GPS app, to navigate your way around town and across the country? Do you use solar water heaters for your home? Do you have an Internet (VoIP) phone? Do you know where the world's most popular swimsuit model was born and lives?

You've probably guessed by now that there's only one answer to all of these questions. Surprise, surprise -- it's Israel.

Israeli innovation is part of your everyday life: "Created in Israel" may not be stamped on all the Israeli innovations that pop up during your average day, but in this short clip, created by the Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs, you can see a small sample of these anonymous inventions for yourself.

This Sunday, June 1 is the 50th anniversary of New York's annual Celebrate Israel Parade that celebrates Israel's amazing accomplishments. If you're in the New York area this Sunday, come on over to Fifth Avenue between 11 am and 4 pm to see the floats, street performers, and marching bands.

In the second short clip below, neuroscientist and actress Mayim Bialik, who plays one on The Big Bang Theory TV Series, tells what Israel means to her.

Enjoy, and Shabbat Shalom.

Celebrate Israel Parade Kicks Off at 11 am Today on Fifth Avenue

A sunny, 77 degree day is forecast for New York City today as the annual Celebrate Israel Parade kicks off at 11 am on Fifth Avenue. From 11 am to 4 pm, thousands are expected to march  and hundreds of thousands are expected to watch and cheer on the American and Israeli community leaders and dignitaries, entertainers, artists, musicians, dancers, celebrities, floats and marching bands.

In 1964, thousands walked down Riverside Drive in support of the young State of Israel. This impromptu walk evolved into the Salute to Israel Parade on Fifth Avenue. Last year the name was changed to Celebrate Israel. It has become the world’s largest gathering in celebration of Israel attracting worldwide media. The Parade enables the tri-state community to celebrate in a non-partisan, apolitical show of unity with Israel.

For the Marching Groups and Clusters the Celebrate Israel Parade is a year-long Israel education effort using a creative theme. This year's theme is "Israel Branches Out." Each Group or Cluster works with the Parade staff to develop a creative presentation with colorful banners, costumes and props in a show of unity and pageantry.The participants will learn about Israel as it relates to: flowers, blossoming, being fruitful, growing, going out on a limb, branching out into (hi-tech), finding our roots, seeds etc. and they will bring a Garden of Delight to Fifth Avenue!

The Jewish Daily Forward published a graphic "Anatomy of a Parade," showing a breakout of the marching groups by category and other parade facts and statistics. For example, 48% of the marchers are day schools, 13.5% are youth groups, 11% synagogues, and 8% Federations and Pro-Israel advocacy groups. Of the participating day schools, 74% are Modern Orthodox, 14% Conservative, 6% nondenominational, and 4% Sephardic.

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If you can get to Manhattan today it will be a great way to spend a bright, sunny, joyous day in celebration of Israel's acheivements. Here's a short video with highlights of last year's parade. Enjoy!

(A SPECIAL NOTE FOR NEW EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS:  THE VIDEO MAY NOT BE VIEWABLE DIRECTLY FROM THE EMAIL THAT YOU GET EACH DAY ON SOME COMPUTERS AND TABLETS.  YOU MUST CLICK ON THE TITLE AT THE TOP OF THE EMAIL TO REACH THE JEWISH HUMOR CENTRAL WEBSITE, FROM WHICH YOU CLICK ON THE PLAY BUTTON IN THE VIDEO IMAGE TO START THE VIDEO.)