Over 500 potential Olim gathered at New York City’s Crown Plaza Hotel in Times Square, on March 25, for an Aliyah Mega Event organized by Nefesh B’Nefesh together with the Ministry of Immigrant Absorption and the Jewish Agency.
The event’s workshops and seminars, which focused on guiding American Jews through the aliyah process, included: Careers in Israel, Financial Planning, Taxes & Budgeting, The Israeli Healthcare System, Navigating Israel’s Education System, Introduction to the Aliyah Process, Aliyah Rights and Benefits and the ‘Go North’ Program.
Aliyah candidates were also offered personal meetings and consolations with staff from all three organizers.
Rabbi Yehoshua Fass, Co-Founder and Executive Director of Nefesh B’Nefesh, engaged college students and young professionals in a session designed, specifically, to meet their individual needs and answer personal queries.
“We have been planning on making Aliyah for a long time now, so we came here in order to get information and figure out a bunch of things, our financial planning among them,” said Craig Messer, a candidate for aliyah. “The Mega Event has been very beneficial for us in doing that.”
“I didn’t come here to tell you to make Aliyah,” said Minister of Immigrant Absorption, Sofa Landver, who appeared at the event. “But I am here to tell you that when you do decide to come home and make Aliyah to Israel that we will be there to greet you and support you.”
To date, Nefesh B’Nefesh has assisted over 30,000 Olim and more than 47,000 North American and British Jews have attended Nefesh B'Nefesh pre-Aliyah informational seminars throughout the US, Canada and UK, including specially tailored programs, events and individual counseling sessions.
“We have seen a 25% increase in participants for the Mega Event this year compared to last, and this is despite the current security situation in Israel and all the talk about Iran,” said Erez Halfon, Vice President of Nefesh B’Nefesh. “This is proof that Zionism is not only steady and strong, but that the desire to move to Israel and make Aliyah in fact continues to increase.”