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B’nai B’rith Fire Scouts Clubhouse

The B’nai B’rith Fire Scouts Clubhouse, located at Haifa’s central fire station, was officially opened for activities at a July 30 ceremony.

The clubhouse was built at the initiative of the B’nai B’rith World Center in memory of 16-year-old fire scout Elad Riven, the youngest of 44 Prison Service guards, policemen and firemen killed in the December 2011 Great Carmel Fire.

Participants in the ceremony included Haifa Region Fire Department Chairman Brig. Gen. Rami Dotan, Elad’s mother Tzvia Riven and three representatives of B’nai B’rith Israel: Nitza Niv, Chair, B’nai B’rith Haifa Regional Council, David Sirton, Deputy Chair, and Ilana Sirton, Mentor, Nitzanei Haifa Lodge.

The ceremony marked completion of the outfitting of the clubhouse and its transfer to the use of the fire scouts. B’nai B’rith invested $80,000 in the project from funds raised after the blaze by the B’nai B’rith Israel Emergency Fund and B’nai B’rith Europe. The clubhouse includes space for meetings, training and recreation.

The B’nai B’rith World Center was charged with implementing aid projects following the Carmel Fire. Shortly after Riven’s tragic death, the World Center learned that Haifa Region Fire Scouts officer Captain Avi Cohen had long dreamed of a dedicated clubhouse for the use of the fire scouts in Haifa – a project that allows teenagers to volunteer with fire departments across the country.

The World Center and the Haifa Region Fire Department cooperated closely for a year and a half to steer the project to fruition and realize Captain Cohen’s dream.