Gilla Gerzon Gilla Gerzon ( ) , known to many United States military personnel as the " mother of the 6th fleet , " is an Israeli who served as director of the Haifa , Israel USO for almost eighteen years , from the time it opened in December 1984 until it closed in September 2002 when U . S . security concerns for the region led to a sharp decrease in U . S . ship visits . In 1993 , she was brought to Somalia to establish a temporary USO for U . S . service personnel deployed in support of Operation Restore Hope . Gerzon is the first Israeli citizen to receive the United States Navy Commendation Medal . Background . Gerzon first began working with U . S . military personnel during her time as director of public relations at Haifa ' s Dan Carmel Hotel in the 1980s . She worked with the hotel to host holiday parties for officers and sailors from visiting U . S . ships , and then tours of Israel . She saw her actions as an " ideal way to repay the American people for all the warmth and comfort she and her daughter had received while in the United States . " Haifa USO . The recommendation to open a USO in Israel was made by U . S . Navy Vice - Admiral Edward Martin , Commander , U . S . Sixth Fleet , when U . S . ship visits to Israel began to increase after the 1983 Beirut barracks bombing in Lebanon . Beginning in 1979 five to ten Sixth Fleet ships began to visit Haifa each year , but by the mid - 80s , after the bombing , the annual number of port calls by U . S . ships had grown to 40 - 50 . Two officers on Admiral Martin ' s staff , Public Affairs Officer Captain Peter Litrenta and Assistant Sixth Fleet Chaplain Rabbi Arnold Resnicoff , had worked with Gerzon during her time at the Dan Carmel , and recommended her as director for the proposed USO operation . The new Haifa USO opened in December 2 , 1984 , before a crowd of hundreds of Navy personnel from the USS Dwight D . Eisenhower and the USS Mississippi . It was located near the entrance to the Dan Panorama Hotel on Mount Carmel . Working with a team of volunteers , Gerzon worked to welcome military personnel and provide them with opportunities to explore and get to know Israel . Under her leadership , the Haifa USO became " one of the best - loved facilities in the USO system . " Referred to as " a one - woman whirlwind " and " inexhaustibly hospitable , " Gerzon ' s " take - charge approach won her renown among the officers and enlisted men of the 6th fleet , " and made the USO " not a sad hangout for lonely sailors , but more like the busy office of a camp ' s activities director . " A USO article noted that the Haifa USO under Gerzon ' s leadership epitomized " forward deployed hospitality for U . S . forces overseas . " Open 24 hours a day when U . S . ships visit Israel , her USO operation served as " an unofficial base of operations to American sailors and Marines forward - deployed to the Mediterranean . " Gerzon was able to augment her small staff with 200 English - speaking volunteers so that the USO could function as a " bridge between visiting U . S . service personnel and the Israeli people , " answering questions , arranging visits , making hotel and tour reservations , and sponsoring a program for local residents to " Adopt a Sailor " during U . S . Navy ship visits . Buses for " liberty parties " from the ships took officers and sailors from the port to the USO door . Activities . Under Gerzon ' s direction , the USO not only provided opportunities for visiting military personnel to tour the country , but also to get involved with its people . For example , Gerzon speaks about the time a group of sailors visited a school for emotionally handicapped children , " just to play with them . . . to make tricks and entertain them . . . [ and ] they went back three times , " while others went to schools to speak with students or to a cancer ward at a Haifa hospital to visit patients , entertaining them or bringing them gifts . Sailors would also help with special projects , such as painting orphanages or even homes for the elderly . Gerzon notes that during major ship visits , 400 - 500 sailors would visit the USO daily , sometimes asking questions about agriculture or technology in Israel , and sometimes to take advantage of free tickets to events such as the Haifa Symphony Orchestra . Trips organized by the USO brought sailors to locations including the Sea of Galilee , Bethlehem , Jerusalem , the Golan Heights , and Masada , in addition to visits to homes and kibbutzim . In addition to activities that brought U . S . military personnel to meet Israelis , Gerzon worked to bring Israelis to meet and greet the Americans — such as the time that crew members from visiting U . S . Navy ships USS Dwight D . Eisenhower and USS Mississippi arrived on small boats from their ships to be greeted at the Haifa port by 50 Israeli school children , singing songs in Hebrew and English , and waving U . S . and Israeli flags . She also coordinated numerous home hospitality visits for arriving sailors — including one time , when a ship arrived on the eve of the Jewish holy day Rosh Hashana and it was hard to make last - minute contact with others , she called home to tell her mother to expect 100 additional guests for dinner . Gerzon recalls that her mother ' s immediate response was that she ' ll start making more soup . On another occasion , Gerzon coordinated volunteers from Haifa and Natanya to prepare 1400 home - cooked meals ( " right down to the chicken soup " ) for crew members of the USS Iwo Jima and the USS El Paso . The USO also sponsored many special events including beach parties that allowed military personnel to mingle with Israeli citizens . Other special events for shipboard personnel Gerzon coordinated on behalf of the USO included children ' s parades , folklore dances , and even fashion shows . In 1989 , Gerzon enlisted the aid of Joel Simhony , director of " Joel Tours , " to create a movie introducing Haifa and Israel to American military personnel . Visits . In addition to creating a welcoming space and opportunities to explore Israel for the military personnel , especially those on visiting U . S . Navy ships , Gerzon worked as the USO Liaison to the U . S . Embassy in Tel Aviv to coordinate visits from many visiting military and civilian distinguished guests . Closing . In 1989 USO financial concerns drove a decision to close the Haifa USO , but a groundswell of support and appeals from the Sixth Fleet , the United States Congress and organizations such as the Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs resulted in a reversal of the decision . Part of the decision was to use the USO to house a new " LT Elmo Zumwalt III " Library , sponsored by Book Bank USA . Soon thereafter , beginning in 1990 , U . S . interest in Haifa increased , not only as a port of call , but even as a possible home port for some Navy ships , including one aircraft carrier . In fact , Israeli President Yitzhak Rabin reportedly proposed to U . S . President Bill Clinton in 1993 that Haifa become the homeport for the U . S . Sixth Fleet , and a number of formal U . S . studies of Haifa port capabilities , including one by the Center for Naval Analyses , were completed . However , when U . S . ship visits to Haifa sharply decreased in the early 2000s , largely because of security concerns in the region , including the Second intifada in Israel and the October 2000 USS Cole bombing in Yemen , the USO was closed in September 2002 . Israel criticized the U . S . decision as one that sent a signal of weakness to Islamic militants . Beginning in 2008 U . S . Navy ship visits to Haifa began to increase once more , but although no plans have been announced to reopen the USO , Haifa Deputy Spokesman Roni Grossman has said that hosting American sailors " is a great tradition of the city " — and although the number of sailors now visiting the city " pales in comparison " to the numbers that used to arrive on Navy ships , " it ' s significant that there is a renewed connection between Israel and the American navy . . . [ and ] Now we ' re doing everything we can to show the sailors a good time . " Additionally , following the traditions established by the Haifa USO , visiting sailors are again engaging in volunteer projects during their visits . Many individuals and organizations involved with supporting visitors , on ships or through visits sponsored by the American Embassy , credit their work with Gerzon and the USO as the inspiration for their involvement . One tour guide who works extensively with military groups and Embassy - sponsored visits recalls how he used to help host sailors with Gilla , noting that through his current efforts he is " still a USO at heart . " USO Somalia . Gerzon was one of the first USO employees to volunteer to go to Somalia to work with the USO to support American troops . Gerzon traveled to Somalia in 1992 to lay the groundwork and gather volunteers for the official December 23 , 1992 opening of " USO Somalia . " Located at the Mogadishu airport , the USO Somalia operation continued through April 1993 , hosting shows from entertainers such as Clint Black , but military personnel reported that something as simple as a " warm coke " ( " best coke I ever had " ) made a big difference in their lives during hard times . Memorializing Americans . In honor of the 241 Americans killed in the 1983 Beirut barracks bombing Gerzon personally spearheaded an effort to have a park dedicated in their honor — with one tree planted for each victim of the attack . Recalling that she was " heartsick when I heard that so many young men had been killed , " Gerzon immediately began to create support for a monument in honor of the victims , but the project was delayed after the kidnapping and eventual murder of U . S . Marine Lt . Col . William R . Higgins . Her efforts were successful when on February 12 , 1992 , the memorial was created , with 241 olive trees lining a " path of peace , " dedicated at a point overlooking Lebanon itself , A " Higgins Tree " is planted at the end of the path . at the Mount Carmel National Park . The tree planting ceremony that officially dedicated the site was attended by more than 250 Marines and Sailors from the U . S . Marine Corps 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit ( MEU ) , and Israeli children from the Degania and Really schools in Haifa . Representing the 24th MEU , Sergeant Major W . E . Hatcher noted that 241 trees were being planted in memory of the 241 American lives lost in the Beirut attack , but that " we also dream that as these trees grow , they will grow with generations of mankind whose hopes of a future filled with peace and freedom will be realized . " Following the initial tree planting , other groups of Sailors and Marines visited the sites , sometimes creating additional ceremonies to mark their visits and remember lost comrades . For example , on April 11 , 1994 , U . S . Marine Corps Brigadier General J . L . Jones was the speaker at a memorial service attended by members of the 24th MEU . Gerzon continued to make this memorial a place to remember American losses , and after the December 1990 death of 21 U . S . sailors who drowned when their liberty boat capsized during its return to the , she began efforts to remember their deaths as well — and within a year 21 additional trees were planted in their memory and a plaque memorializing them was added to the park . Gerzon continued to host ship visits to the memorial site , including visits for ship ' s crews to clean up the area and polish the plaques . Additionally , visits include an opportunity to read the names of those who have died because , according to Gerzon , " In Jewish tradition , if you read the names of the dead out loud , they never die . " Gerzon has stated that the USO ' s goal is not to move mountains , but instead , " to move a few people ' s hearts , " and she believes that efforts such as this one help that occur . Poetry . Gerzon ' s poetry often marked her efforts , including the poem she wrote to remember the Americans lost in the Beirut bombing : " They came in peace . " Gerzon explained that " These men came in peace , to keep the peace . . . and that ' s why I felt they should be remembered . " At the April 1994 service held at the memorial for the victims , a new poem by Gerzon was read and included in the program , ending with the hope that " the children , who are the sign of hope , will walk in the path of peace Winter , Spring , Summer , and Fall , and God ' s nature will hold their memories . " The poem she wrote during her time with the USO in Somalia , " Rise up , children of Somalia , " was the inspiration for the song of the same name sung by the Somali singer Malika and the Mombasa Roots Band . Honors and awards . For her work during Operation Desert Storm , the U . S . Secretary of the Navy authorized the award of the Navy Commendation Medal ( since renamed the " Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal " ) to Gerzon . The medal was presented in a ceremony on board the USS Inchon , making Gerzon the first Israeli citizen to receive that award .