Supporting Olim Every Step of the Way

Nicole Schanker, 32, is a trauma social worker in Tel Aviv. Tovia Lent, 65, is a physician working with Israel's Gaza-border communities. Sara, 27, is a Psychology student who is currently serving 60 days of IDF reserve duty on top of the 200 days she has already served since October 7, 2023. All three immigrated to Israel from the United States – Lent and Schanker in the past two years – and all three are building fulfilling and successful lives in the Jewish state. For this, all three unreservedly credit Nefesh B'Nefesh.

"I didn't know where to start with my Aliyah, but Nefesh B'Nefesh had it all in hand," says Nicole. "They were totally organized, guided me through every step and were there for anything I needed. No question was too small or too silly for them."

Nefesh B'Nefesh "was the greatest thing," agrees Tovia. "From medical licensing to immigration to streamlining professional placement in Israel's healthcare system to the wonderful community in which my wife and I now live – they supported us at every stage of the journey."

Sara "was 19 years old, a soldier, with no family in Israel, struggling with Hebrew, working around the clock and always tired – and NBN gave me a home," she says. "They were always there for me, whether it was for advice, dealing with bureaucracy, somewhere to come or being made to feel special, they were totally dedicated to what I needed."

With Israel's Ministry of Aliyah & Integration, the Jewish Agency, Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael and JNF-USA, NBN addresses the national priorities of Aliyah, national service, community development and Zionist education, while it strengthens ties between Israel and Jewish communities worldwide.

Pre-Aliyah, Aliyah and post-Aliyah
"I was 18 when I decided I'd live in Israel," says Nicole Schanker. "I come from a very Jewish home in Connecticut, but I'd been struggling with my Jewish identity. My mom had done a gap-year program in Israel, and she thought it would be a good idea for me too. My Young Judaea gap year not only helped me find myself in the Jewish world, it completely changed my life! The studying, volunteering, hiking and Hebrew expanded my Jewishness from being simply about the synagogue to culture, people, nation, life. I finally felt connected."

Schanker returned to the US after that year to study, knowing she would be back. "I took a Master's degree in Social Work at Florida Atlantic University, specialized as a trauma social worker and worked as a hospital trauma therapist," she recounts. "That was pre-October 7. Jewishness and Israel weren't topics that ever came up. By the time I went to Cornell last year for a second Master's degree in Health Administration, they were the only topics. There were endless campus protests, fellow students refused to work with me. And I was mourning two dear friends murdered on that first terrible day – one at the Nova festival and the other doing reserve duty in Sderot."

Nicole stayed at Cornell through that wrenching year "because I wanted the qualification. Thankfully, the university has allowed me to complete the second year in Israel. My aim is to direct a trauma program, and do it in Israel to help my people in the best way that I can."

She began the Aliyah process last January. "Thankfully, I did it through NBN. There were counselors for pre-Aliyah, Aliyah and now post-Aliyah, all of them always available, always there for anything I needed, by phone or by WhatsApp. As of now, I'm finishing my degree, getting my license transferred, learning Hebrew and volunteering. I see my Aliyah as both personal and ideological. It says to me that I win and that we win."

Bringing physicians to Israel
Aliyah was a straightforward decision for Dr. Tovia Lent and his wife Ilana. By early 2024, three of their four children and their 11 grandchildren were living in Israel, and he had the opportunity to bring over 30 years' experience as an internist in US hospitals and private practice to a country still reeling from the October 7 attacks and their aftermath. NBN, he says, made turning that decision into reality equally straightforward.

"I started with MedEx in New Jersey, an NBN program that expedites Aliyah formalities, licensing and employment for medical professionals," he says. "Six weeks later, an email arrived, telling me that my medical license was accepted in Israel." Last year, NBN's five-year-old MedEx initiative globalized into the International Medical Aliyah Program (IMAP). With the Ministries of Aliyah & Integration, Health, Negev, Galilee, and National Resilience, and the Jewish Agency for Israel, it has already brought over 800 – and counting – working physicians to Israel. This has reinforced Israel's commitment to recruiting 2,000 new physicians over the next five years, bolstered by key partners, including the Marcus Foundation, the Gottesman Fund, Jewish Federations of North America, the Azrieli Foundation and Arison Foundation.

"That was just the beginning. With guidance from NBN, we decided to settle in Ashkelon. We love the beach, and the town has a big and welcoming Anglo community of which we quickly became part. Our social life here is busier than it was in the US! NBN helped me set up my observational internship and clinical evaluation – mandatory for foreign-trained doctors seeking medical licensing or specialty recognition in Israel – at Barzilai Medical Center in Ashkelon, from July to September 2024. At the same time, they directed me to an ulpan in Ashdod where I built on my 16 years of yeshiva Hebrew and online Hebrew courses. By the end of the summer, I was able to give a lecture in Hebrew about use of EKGs."

There were two job opportunities waiting to tap Dr. Lent's decades of experience, one close to home in Ashkelon and the other with the Clalit Health Fund in Sderot 14 miles to the south, working with the challenging, underserved Gaza border communities. He chose the latter. In accepting it, he became the first immigrant physician to receive Israel's new structured government financial incentive to start work in public clinics or healthcare facilities within four miles of the Gaza border.

"I couldn't be happier with my choice," he says. "I feel intensely connected with my patients in the Gaza border region. They're resilient and warm, but they're a traumatized population and they need help. By connecting me with this opportunity, NBN has enabled me to put my lifetime experience to work in southern Israel's healthcare system, and to help those who have suffered."

Help for lone soldiers
Sara, too, has spent a lot of time in the Gaza area these past two years. She is one of 20,133 lone soldiers – youngsters without immediate family in Israel – supported by NBN in partnership with the IDF and Friends of the Israel Defense Forces (FIDF). Since the evening of October 7, 2023, she has been stationed on the Israel-Gaza border for over 200 days, deploying artillery to defend the area, clear the way for advancing troops and provide cover during casualty evacuations.

"I grew up in New York but I always had a deep love for Israel and knew I wanted to make my life here," she says. "I came by myself when I was 18, and after a year at seminary I was drafted into the IDF."

She trained at the Michve Alon base in the Galilee, and then joined the IDF artillery corps as a combat soldier. "I never realized how important my position was until October 7," she says. Released from mandatory service after two years, she is now studying Psychology and Human Resources at Ariel University and is working full-time as a marketing coordinator – though for much of the past two years, she has been back in IDF uniform.

"It's been three months in, two out, all year," she says. "NBN has been amazing, both during my compulsory service and now. They arranged all my Aliyah bureaucracy. They held a special one-stop personal errands day where I could do everything under one roof – there's never time for this when you're in the army – from banking to National Insurance to driving license to housing to employment. My friends and I still talk about this! They held fun community based events for us. The Yom HaAtzmaut BBQ takes first place. As soon as I was off base, the first thing I checked was to see what was coming up. It was always my plan to make Israel my home, to be Israeli, and NBN made it so much easier and happier. The fact that I now have an opportunity to defend my home makes me both proud and humble."

Skilled, motivated and deeply committed to building meaningful lives in Israel, Nicole, Tovia and Sara represent the olim of today and how they are making an impact on the State of Israel. With Nefesh B'Nefesh providing guidance, advocacy, community, and a deep sense of identity, together they are shaping a more vibrant and thriving Israel for generations to come.

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