In 1952, on a tour of Southern Israel, Ben-Gurion passed by a small community with only a hut and a few tents – Sde Boker. He stopped to greet the founders of the community, whom he believed were doing a great service to the newly-founded State by reclaiming the desert. Later, he sent a letter to the community wishing them luck and confiding in them his "jealousy" of their humble lifestyle.[1]