From driving tests and banking to taxes – and everything in between, Nefesh B’Nefesh will streamline the arduous process of maneuvering through Israeli bureaucracy for a group of about 1,600 Lone Soldiers – immigrants who come to Israel without their immediate families from all over the world and volunteer to serve in the IDF.
Yom Siddurim (Hebrew for errands day) will take place on Thursday, February 16, 2017, at Beit Hachayal, 60 Weitzman Street, Tel Aviv.
According to a Nefesh B’Nefesh press release, every IDF Lone Soldier is entitled to take a personal errands day once every two months. The day is an important opportunity to attend to their personal affairs, such as bureaucratic paperwork, banking and all other essential matters. However, for most Lone Soldiers one day is often not enough time to complete their necessary errands. So, since 2014, Yom Siddurim as become an annual event and an essential mainstay in assisting Lone Soldiers to adapt to their new lives in Israel.
The Nefesh B’Nefesh-FIDF Lone Soldiers Program successfully recruited the essential civilian agencies whose services are needed by Lone Soldiers to convene on the same day, under one roof to assist the Lone Soldiers with their personal matters.
“As our Lone Soldiers Program continues to grow, we are proud to expand the ways we support our brave, Lone Soldiers,” said Rabbi Yehoshua Fass, Co-Founder and Executive Director of Nefesh B’Nefesh. “For me it is emotional to see these incredible Olim, speaking multiple languages, gathered under one roof, unified in Zionism and dedicated service. This day is aimed at showing them how grateful we are.”
Among the participating agencies on Errands Day: the Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Aliyah and Immigrant Absorption, the Student Licensing Office, Ministry of Housing, Automobile License Authority, Israel Tax Authority, The Jewish Agency for Israel, Ha’aguda Lema’an Hachayal, Discharged Soldiers Guidance Department, Electric Company of Israel, Ktseen Ha’air, the Post Office, Bank of Israel and more. The event is being organized in cooperation with the IDF Human Resources Department, the Ministry of Aliyah and Immigrant Absorption, the Ministry of Interior, The Jewish Agency for Israel, Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael and JNF-USA.