JERUSALEM – There are some 5,600 lone soldiers currently serving in the IDF, 60% of them are new immigrants. Being a lone soldier is not an easy task. Faced with the challenges every solider contends with, lone soldiers have no family for support, no home for refuge when on furlough and are forced to cope on their own. Who can they turn to for emotional support? Who will they spend the holidays with? Who will cheer for them when they are sworn in at the end of basic training? The Michael Levin Lone Soldier Center was established some 5 years ago with the objective of providing a home for these dedicated fighters.
The Center provides a home and support to some 5,000 soldiers who cannot go home to their parents. Five years ago Jared White, Josh Flaster and Tziki Aud decide to found an organization that would provide lone soldiers with and address to all their needs, offering guidance and support. White and Flaster were themselves lone soldiers and knew first-hand what it means to be one.
“Michael Levin was a paratrooper serving in the 890th Battalion and was killed in the Second Lebanon War. I knew him; he was adopted by Tziki Aud. When we thought of the new organization we thought about a dedication. Therefore, the Center is named after Mickey. He was part of the lone soldier’s family,” explains White. White, 29, is a resident of Jerusalem and is studying to become a teacher. After making Aliyah he enlisted in the IDF and served as a commander in the paratroopers. He currently heads the Jerusalem branch. “During our first staff meeting everyone took out the money they had in their pockets. We had a total sum of 320 NIS; from here we grew. Today we are a national-wide organization,” Jared says proudly. The Center has branches in Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Beer Sheva and Haifa, with 300 volunteers who help run them. Almost all the organization’s members are former lone soldiers.
“A lone soldier doesn’t have the support of parents or family who can help with many issues. When you have family things like food and laundry are taken for granted. It’s hard to leave home; it’s even more difficult when you are a lone soldier facing the challenges of military service together with the regular demands of life. For the first time you are on your own and have to manage,” points out veteran volunteer Michael Shapira. Michael is a 28 year old medical student at Hebrew U. He comes from California, and served in the Nahal Brigade.
“I personally had it comparatively easy, because I lived on Kibbutz Maoz Chaim. Sometimes it was really hard to come home on Friday from a base far away when I had things to take care of. When I got back everything was closed and I didn’t have a chance to do anything. I managed because I had a family that could help me. Many lone soldiers don’t have that kind of support. Therefore, it is very important that the organization serve as a support net for them.”
“I began volunteering for the organization four years ago. I love the work and really believe in what we do. I constantly see soldiers entering their new life and we help them directly,“ shares Dana Yatsiv, who helps with the accounting and budgeting. Emigrating from California seven years ago, she is a business management and literature student at Hebrew U. “When I was a lone soldier I had to take care of everything on my own. I had a hard time with military bureaucracy; I didn’t know who to speak with. You can easily get lost in the IDF system and it can be very stressful. Our organization has advisors who can help the soldiers and speak with their commanders. There are people who can really fight for them,” Dana adds.