Nefesh B’Nefesh: Israel's Anglo Community Receives Recognition

Prof. Morris Hartstein, David B. Marcu and Michal Berman are three of 64 olim from English-speaking countries who have recently been honored with the Nefesh B’Nefesh Sylvan Adams Bonei Zion Prize. Missouri-born Hartstein, 59, is a pioneering professor of ophthalmology who so far has treated 8,400 impoverished villagers in Ethiopia. Marcu, 62, has assisted over 5,200 people with disabilities and taken their needs onto Israel’s national agenda since making aliyah from Pennsylvania in 1984. And Berman, 34, who left New York for Israel 12 years ago, created and runs the Tel Aviv Art studio, where her therapeutic workshops for soldiers suffering PTSD help them deal with stress, anxiety and depression.

Created in 2014, the Bonei Zion Prize recognizes Anglo educators, physicians, scientists, spiritual leaders, entrepreneurs, diplomats, political scientists, soldiers, young leaders and more for their impact on Israeli life – its economy, society and culture, its education, science and arts, its health, wellbeing and global outreach.

“These extraordinary individuals serve as leaders in their local communities, in the State of Israel and in the worldwide Jewish community,” says Canadian-Israeli businessman and philanthropist Sylvan Adams in his message to last year’s laureates. “Their contributions to their respective fields are truly inspiring.”

Providing health care in Ethiopia

Prof. Morris Hartstein sees his aliyah as instigating his “opportunity to treat and prevent eye disease and blindness among Ethiopia’s poor.” A Harvard-trained oculoplastic surgeon, he came to Israel on a one-year Sabbatical 19 years ago, with his wife, Elisa, and their children, the eldest then a 1st-grader – and never went back. Today, he is the head of plastic and reconstructive eye surgery at the Shamir Medical Center and a professor of ophthalmology at Tel Aviv University’s Sackler School of Medicine.

“Professionally, at Assuta and at the Tel Aviv University Medical School, I was welcomed, treated warmly and found eye-care standards comparable with those in the US,” he says. “And beyond that, Elisa and I love Israel’s energy and excitement. We decided to stay. Nefesh B’Nefesh gave us very welcome help in converting the family’s temporary status in Israel into citizenship.”

During the summer of 2014, Hartstein, Elisa and their four children, aged 11 to 16, took a one-week trip to volunteer with Jews in Ethiopia. Stunned by the levels of poverty and inadequate healthcare they encountered, they returned the following year and set up their first mobile eye-care clinic in Gondar’s Jewish compound. In the over a dozen visits to Ethiopia that followed, Prof. Hartstein has examined and treated over 8,400 patients, distributed thousands of eyeglasses and medicines, overseen 1,300 cataract surgeries and brought 18 Ethiopian ophthalmologists to Israel for further training. Together with Struggle to Save Ethiopian Jewry, he also established a food program for over 500 malnourished children in Gondar’s Jewish community.

His contribution has been appreciated and recognized. In 2018, President Rivlin invited him to join Israel’s first presidential visit to Ethiopia; and in 2020, Minister of Aliyah and Integration Pnina Tamano-Shata included him in her diplomatic mission there, during which he also accompanied Operation Tzur Yisrael’s first aliyah flight.

In 2022, Hartstein and his wife established the nonprofit Operation Ethiopia to provide quality eye care to Ethiopia’s poor by bringing ophthalmologists, optometrists and lay volunteers to Ethiopia four times a year.

Advocating for Israelis with disabilities

David Marcu, his wife Rona and their two children had been living in Israel for 20 years by the time the Hartsteins arrived. “There was no Nefesh B’Nefesh back then,” he says. “It would have made our aliyah so much easier! We spent months preparing the paperwork and waiting in government offices – everything that Nefesh B’Nefesh now handles for newcomers.”

The year was 1984 and Israel Elwyn had just been created as a non-profit to support people with disabilities throughout Israel. Marcu, who has an MBA from Temple University, joined its management team. By 1993, he was CEO, and last year he was named Senior CEO.

“Israel Elwyn has revolutionized the way Israelis see individuals with disabilities,” Marcu asserts. “Their needs and services are now part of the national agenda.” The organization has succeeded, he stresses, because of its wonderful team. Addressing toddlers to seniors, veteran Israelis to new olim, they establish and run interventions, extend preschool and school days, support IDF and National Service volunteers, provide job training and employment assistance, and operate adult day centers, retiree programs, supported living services, and cultural programs, as well as promoting self-advocacy.

“Everyone has the ability to advocate for themselves,” says Marcu. “Developing that capacity in those with disabilities enables them to take responsibility for their lives, impact their environment and fulfill their needs. I made aliyah to a young country,” he reflects. “Today, I live in a sophisticated, developed nation, which, despite its problems, can take pride in so much – not least its embrace of its population with disabilities. I invested my life in a winner!”

Helping others through art therapy

Michal Berman’s investment is far shorter, but no less intense. She was 22 when she made aliyah in 2011 and chose to serve in the IDF as a Lone Soldier. “I trained as an infantry shooting instructor,” she says. “The people at Nefesh B’Nefesh were wonderful. They not only helped me through the bureaucracy but were there with a helping hand and a ready shoulder when I needed it. It wasn’t always an easy experience, but it grounded and empowered me, and helped me find out who I am.”

Who she is, it turned out, is someone who gives back. She followed her IDF service with an MA in art therapy at the University of Haifa, and then opened her Tel Aviv Art Studio as a unique space where people of all ages and backgrounds can connect through art. One prime target is olim: with Nefesh B’Nefesh’s Tel Aviv Hub, the Studio holds Paint Nights that bring together people of all ages and backgrounds. She defined a second focus group during her IDF service. “I saw soldiers with PTSD, who weren’t getting the help they needed,” she says. “Art is a powerful therapeutic tool that can help break post-trauma stigma, lessen stress and anxiety and overcome grief.”

When the pandemic shackled the Studio, she reached further afield and continues to do so. Through the Rwandan NGO Soul of Rwanda, she connects with street children in this central African country via Zoom every Sunday, leading popular art classes by hand gesture, shape and movement.

“Israel is a country of opportunity,” she says, perhaps intuitively speaking for her fellow Bonei Zion laureates, as well as for herself. “It’s small but growing, and it’s a place where you can find yourself.”

Making aliyah easier and friendlier

Nefesh B’Nefesh welcomes, celebrates and actively helps olim from North America, and encourages them to be proactive with their Zionistic dreams. Over 75,000 people from the US and Canada have made aliyah with Nefesh B’Nefesh over the past 20 years. With 90% of them still living in Israel, Nefesh B’Nefesh is justly credited with revolutionizing Anglo aliyah.

Created in 2002 by entrepreneur Tony Gelbart and Rabbi Yehoshua Fass, both of Florida, its aim is to make each oleh and every aliyah a success. To do so, the nonprofit has streamlined the process, and made it accessible, warm and user-friendly. Its starting point is identifying hurdles that discourage aliyah, challenging existing attitudes and educating toward a stronger connection to Israel – preparing future olim for the aliyah process step by step. Nefesh B’Nefesh works closely with Israel’s Ministry of Aliyah and Integration, the Jewish Agency for Israel, Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael and the Jewish National Fund-USA.

When a Nefesh B’Nefesh flight touches down at Ben Gurion airport, its staff is on hand to provide the support that helps new arrivals acclimate, integrate and thrive in Israel – addressing financial, professional, logistical and social challenges with its Planning Your Life in Israel and Rights and Benefits guidance. Through personal outreach, workshops and special events, Nefesh B’Nefesh provides basic information, advice and troubleshooting about employment, housing, government services, education, learning Hebrew, healthcare, and other issues. Its Boot Camp, for example, teaches essential business basics in Israel. Its FIDF-Nefesh B’Nefesh Lone Soldiers Program is the address for every Lone Soldier in Israel before, during, and after their IDF service. Moreover, the organization advocates for Anglo olim, ensuring that Israel’s political and decision-making echelons are aware of the community’s extensive and ongoing contribution to the country.

For more information about Nefesh B’Nefesh, visit the website >>
For more information on the Bonei Zion Prize, visit the website >>

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