Over the past 45 years almost 300,000 people have volunteered for Sar-El. The experience is so powerful, over half of them have returned multiple times.

Sar-El, the National Project for Volunteers for Israel, has become an indispensable pillar of support for the Israel Defense Forces, drawing volunteers from across the globe to perform essential non-combat logistical work on military bases.

The program was founded in 1982 by the late Dr. Aharon Davidi, a former head of the IDF Paratroopers and Infantry Corps, during the Galilee War.

At that time, Golan Heights settlements faced the disastrous prospect of losing their entire agricultural crop because most able-bodied settlers had been called up for reserve duty.

Davidi sent a recruitment team to the United States, and within weeks, some 650 volunteers arrived to help with the harvest.

The success of that mission led to the formal establishment of Sar-El in the spring of 1983, and the program has been operating ever since.

Volunteers come from remarkably diverse backgrounds and countries. To date, Sar-El is represented in over 30 countries worldwide, and more than 4,000 volunteers participate each year.

Participants come from all over the world. but especially from France, the United States, Canada, England, South Africa, Hungary and Holland. Many participants hear about the program through word of mouth, community organizations, or Jewish outreach groups.

One volunteer explained, “I first heard about Sar-El from a friend who had done it the year before. She couldn’t stop talking about how meaningful it was, so I signed up immediately.”

Another said, “My rabbi mentioned it during a sermon about connecting with Israel. I went home that night and applied.”

Over the decades, tens of thousands of individuals have volunteered through Sar-El, and a significant number return multiple times.

One woman in a volunteer group was participating for the 13th time, and another volunteer, Joseph Werk, embarked on his 20th stint with the program.

A returnee shared, “I keep coming back because every time I leave, I feel like I have made a real difference. The soldiers remember you, and they are always so grateful.”

Another repeat volunteer noted, “The first time I came, I was nervous. Now, it feels like coming home. I have made friends from all over the world, and we reunite here year after year.”

The work volunteers perform has become absolutely indispensable to the daily functioning of IDF bases.

They pack food rations and medical kits, clean and maintain tanks and other military vehicles, organize inventory in warehouses, paint buildings, and perform general maintenance.

One of the most staggering contributions is in the kitchen, where volunteers help prepare approximately 35,000 meals a day for soldiers on active duty.

A volunteer described the experience, “We spent hours chopping vegetables and cooking rice. It was exhausting, but knowing that those meals were going to soldiers who were out in the field made every minute worth it.”

Another said, “I worked in a food barracks packing boxes of packaged foods. We put together hundreds of boxes, and I kept thinking about the soldier who would open that box and find a hot meal waiting for them.”

Meeting real IDF soldiers is often the most profound part of the experience for volunteers. Many arrive with preconceived notions, only to find their perspectives transformed.

One volunteer shared, “I expected to see hardened warriors, but I saw teenagers who were scared and tired. They were so grateful that we had come all this way just to help them.”

Another reflected, “The soldiers we worked alongside were not the invincible figures I had imagined. They were human, and they were exhausted. Seeing their vulnerability made me want to work even harder for them.”

A third volunteer said, “I will never forget the look on a young soldier’s face when she realized we had come from America just to help her unit. She almost cried.”

The soldiers, in turn, accept the volunteers with open arms.

A soldier on base commented, “When we see these people from all over the world giving up their vacation time to come here and work for free, it gives us a tremendous morale boost. It reminds us that we are not alone.”

Another soldier added, “They come from comfortable lives, and they choose to sleep in barracks and eat army food just to be with us. It is humbling and inspiring.”

One volunteer summarized the experience perfectly: “You come thinking you are giving something to Israel, but you leave realizing that Israel has given you so much more. It is a connection to something bigger than yourself, and it is why I will keep coming back.”