November 20, 2023 I Philanthropy
Gig Gear Donates 400-Plus Pairs of Gig Gloves to Israel to Help War Efforts
Left: Gig Gear's Evan Grazi and Danny Shatzkes packing up the Gig Gloves. Right: Judah Koller receiving the Gloves at a donation distribution center in Israel.
Gig Gear has announced it has donated approximately 450 pairs of its flagship Gig Gloves work gloves to Israel. Initially developed for AV installers and musicians to efficiently set up gigs and events while protecting their hands, when the Isarel-Palestine War broke out in early October, Gig Gear’s Evan Grazi and Danny Shatzkes saw a way they could help.
“When this war started, we were horrified and wanted to help in any way we could, but we felt so isolated by being all the way in New York City,” Shatzkes said. “We saw emails that were sent out about supplies that were needed in Israel, and one of those supplies was tactical gloves that could be used by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) soldiers and civilians who are cleaning up damaged buildings in their cities and towns.
While Gig Gloves weren’t designed to be tactical gloves, Shatzkes has heard anecdotally of many people using Gig Gloves for hunting and other similar activities thanks to their removable fingertips for improved dexterity and TPR molding to protect hands
“With this in mind, we boxed up the gloves and sent them to Washington, D.C. where they would be sent to Israel via a foundation and received there by a friend of mine, Dr. Judah Koller, who currently works as a professor at Hebrew University,” Shatzkes said. “Evan and I both have a lot of family and friends in Israel, and it felt really good to be able to do our small part to help out by sending over these Gig Gloves.”
Three days after shipping the gloves, Shatzkes’ friend Judah Koller sent images of himself at a donation distribution center, receiving the gloves that were ready to be dispersed to the IDF soldiers.
“One of the most vital sources of light in these dark times is the remarkable support provided by friends around the world,” Koller said. “A few days after the start of the war, Danny wrote saying that he wanted to help and that he thought Gig Gloves might be of value to our soldiers. I confirmed that this was the case and then, through other friends, connected Danny and Gig Gear with a foundation in D.C. that was eager to get the Gloves on a shipment to Israel just a few days later. It all happened so fast, but Danny made it work and there are now almost 450 pairs of those gloves being worn by soldiers who are out there, risking their lives for our country and our people.”
