Israel called up hundreds of thousands of reservists in the wake of the October 7 Hamas attack that left more than a thousand Israelis dead, many more wounded, and hundreds held hostage in Gaza. While that call-up of reservists gave it the manpower it needed for its Gaza operation, it also left many businesses starved of the manpower they needed to function, especially small farms.
So, a few cowboys from the American West decided to help out the Israeli farmers and farming communities by hopping on flights across the Atlantic and Meditteranean to Israel, where they pitched in on farms and distributed supplies throughout the impacted communities.
One of the cowboys, John Plocher, then appeared on FOX Business’ Varney & Co. to speak about what he and the few other cowboys, most of whom were from Montana, did to help out once they arrived and why they felt the call to travel abroad and help out.
Beginning, he described where in Israel they are and how the location makes helping the farmers and distributing supplies more useful than anything else, as the region was not harmed in the attack but is smarting from a loss of manpower due to the call-up.
He said, “Well, what we’re doing is we’re out here in Judea and Samaria. What they’re doing is they’re supporting the farmers and the Jewish communities out here in Judea and Samaria. They’re bringing things, essential supplies needed for the communities around here so that what happened on the attack here recently doesn’t happen out here.”
Continuing, Plocher went on to describe the general situation and how the communities need help that he and his fellow cowboys can provide, saying, “They’re bringing in bulletproof vests, night vision goggles, security drones, stuff to keep these communities safe. So what we’re doing is, we’re distributing supplies. We’re working on a warehouse here on base. We’ve been out in the communities helping with just regular tasks, just stuff where they’re – all the men have been called up for the draft. So, we’ve been working on some of the farms around here and stuff like that.”
Plocher then, when Varney asked if the cowboys were teaching the Israelis anything, said that really they were learning more from the Israelis, saying, “Teaching them? Oh, I think they’re teaching me. The people of Israel live. They are here in the land, it’s their land. And I’m just excited to be here and support and work with them.”
Concluding, Plocher, a Christian, described how his faith informed his decision to travel to Israel, saying, “I’m a Bible believer. I believe in the whole Bible and I believe in God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. And yeah, we believe that this land was given to the Jewish people by God. And they have a right to this land.”
In a separate interview, Plocher spoke more about the faith angle of his decision, saying, “God put a special calling on my life and has given me certain talents, direct my life in a certain path, that I can do something when the time comes. I am not on Earth for money, a new truck or property, a vacation – that is not my purpose. I feel called here now and am glad to be here.”
Watch the cowboys talk to the Daily Wire about their experience here: