Why I went on a Sar-El program

Candice Solarsh
August 29, 2002

Why would someone go on this program called Sar-El?

Before we proceed any further it is worthwhile to note who goes on such a program…

I am a 21-year-old Jewish South African female. This made me unique amongst the participants but don’t worry the full age/sex spectrum was represented.

Why did I go on this program? One of my fundamental beliefs in life is that one has to be proactive in ones beliefs. I believe that Israel is the land G-d has given to the Jewish nation. As such we need to do everything in our power to ensure that we preserve our claim on this land. This takes place through the engagement in either active or passive participation. The latter is an opportunity for one to donate funds and teach people about our cause and its long history. The former, on the other hand, is whereby an individual fights for the preservation of Israel. Sar-El presented itself to me as an opportunity to take part in the former.

Although I was not going to be directly part of the army, I knew that my presence would be of much help. Indeed my thoughts proved to be correct because my going on Sar-El allowed Israel to save funds and for soldiers to be used more efficiently. Furthermore, my presence as a volunteer managed to inspire the soldiers and once more remind them why they were doing what they were doing.

Due to the lack of human resources in Israel, they often have to hire people to do work in place of the soldiers when in a crisis situation. By doing this Israel spends funds that could be put to better use elsewhere.

Soldiers have to both defend the state as well do mundane things like maintain their bases. I was given the opportunity to relieve certain soldiers of their ‘trivial’ base tasks. An example of this is when I relieved soldiers of their gardening duties.

More than this Sar-El allowed me to engage in conversation with the soldiers. Through this I both gained a better understanding of the current situation in Israel and managed to inspire the soldiers.

I have no regrets about going on the program and would recommend it to anyone wanting to fulfill a more active role in giving to the Jewish people.