Samuel Z. Klausner was born in Brooklyn, NY on December 19th, 1923, and died in Philadelphia, PA on December 27th, 2021. In his youth, he read Torah and European Jewish poetry. He joined Zionist youth groups and was aware of what was going on in Palestine. After serving as a navigator in WWII in B-24 bomber aircraft, for which he was awarded two bronze stars, he earned a Bachelors in Mathematics from New York University. In 1947, he went on to study at Hebrew University in Jerusalem, but, for security reasons, classes never started.

AVILC will host a virtual event through a zoom presentation of clips from past programs at West Point to commemorate and honor American volunteers who came to the aid of the State of Israel during their War of Independence between 1947-1949.

Particular recognition for those who made the ultimate sacrifice, with specific acknowledgment for Colonel David ‘Mickey’ Marcus.  Colonel Marcus is interred in the U.S. Military Academy, West Point, NY.

AVILC Board Member Mike Flint is producing a film "Angles in the Sky" about the volunteer Air Force that came from around the world in Israel's War of Independence, and the riveting book version has recently been published. It features the exploits of his father and Machal veteran, Mitchell Flint, along with several other North American volunteers who were crucial to Israel's subjugation of several invading armies.