The tragedy temporarily halted activity on the app as events were canceled and the country entered a period of mourning, but it breathed new life into its founders. Over the last month, Zygo has been using its platform as a tool to support fundraising efforts until the country is ready to return to normalcy.
“All the events that were supposed to take place were canceled and no one knew what was going on, so all connectivity was cut off and everyone in the industry was attending events.” Fruchter explained. “Everything was chaos.”
Zygo was designed as an app to help connect party organizers with relevant suppliers, venues, and DJs. This allows users to arrange events, book and pay suppliers, and manage guest lists for events, all in one place. Fruchter and Zylberstein were inspired to create the app as teenagers who liked partying with friends, and realized they had a tool that could aid Israel’s recovery efforts after the attack.
“I have an opportunity here to change what I already have to help others,” he explained. “When I help people with a fundraiser, I end up helping everyone. I help write names, I help create that person’s event, I help people who need money. It was a win-win situation where I transformed my platform into something relevant.”
The Israel Children’s Fund is a new volunteer initiative launched days after 7/10 by a group of Israeli high-tech entrepreneurs and venture capitalists to help countless children who have experienced the trauma of terrorism and lost their lives. is focused on providing much-needed assistance to the. Its main goal is to provide financial and emotional support to children and young people up to the age of 20, and her fundraising goal is $100 million.
Event organizers say that for every shekel they have already received from ticket purchases, they have received five times that amount in direct donations. As a result, the foundation has already provided immediate relief grants to 174 orphans and established trusts for all orphans as of October 7th.
Zygo hopes to help re-enter the event management space as the country slowly returns to normalcy. Its main focus now is fundraising and helping to provide “the New Year everyone wants to have” despite the ongoing challenges facing the hospitality industry. Hundreds of thousands of young people serve in the Israel Defense Forces across Israel, creating a staffing shortage and some venues remaining closed due to safety concerns. Nevertheless, the event provides an opportunity to raise funds and awareness for charity, even if the event itself had to be postponed for safety reasons.
“I sincerely hope that we all look forward to simpler, happier days when we can continue to dance and party,” Fruchter concluded. “I hope that my platform can help as many people as possible now and in the future…so that our country can get through what’s going on and see better days.”