Photo Credit: courtesy MDA
Grace Silverstein of London volunteers with Israel's Magen David Adom emergency medical service.

Dozens of young people from the Diaspora are here in Israel after having chosen to spend their summer vacations volunteering in Magen David Adom (MDA) ambulances and saving Israeli lives.

“After a few shifts in the ambulance, there is no way that we will not know Hebrew,” says Grace Silverstein. The 21-year-old, a resident of London, came to Israel to participate in a unique program of the Israel Experience company and Magen David Adom.

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The program trains young students from the Diaspora to be first aid providers and assigns them to work with MDA mobile unit teams for five weeks.

“I know that there are cultural differences between Israelis and English people, but we have been treated very well here,” Silverstein says. “The intensity of the program and the time we spend alongside Hebrew speakers in ambulances and at accident scenes forces us to learn the language, which is great,” she says.

Ethan Benjamin, 19, is also from London. He was particularly moved by the elderly Holocaust survivor he helped.

“We arrived at the scene and found a 102-year-old woman who had fallen,” he says. “The person there who had called us explained that she was a Holocaust survivor.

“I was shook because there were quite a few Holocaust victims in my family and it’s an issue very close to my heart. I realized that if I can save a Holocaust survivor here in Israel, I’m doing something really meaningful.”

Some of the volunteers join the unique program because it allows them to acquire much better and more hands-on experience than is possible in their countries of origin.

Julie Mallinger, 21, from Pennsylvania, is studying biomedical engineering.

“I wanted to do practical training and that’s not easy in the United States,” Mallinger says. “Now with the coronavirus restrictions it’s even more complicated.

“It’s completely different In Israel and I feel like I’m learning a lot here every shift. The other day was the first time I ever did artificial respiration. It’s exciting to be able to help people.”

“Participants in the MDA Overseas program come from across the globe and join in saving lives in Israel,” says Amos Hermon, CEO of the Israel Experience company.

“There is no more tangible and powerful way to strengthen their Jewish identity and connection to the State of Israel and all its citizens than saving their lives.

“The program participants truly put into practice the saying ‘All Jews are responsible for one another’ and they join the thousands of Diaspora youth that the Israel Experience has been bringing to Israel despite the challenges posed by the coronavirus.”

Dr. Eli Yaffe, MDA’s Deputy Director General and the head of its Community Division, adds, “We feel a great sense of pride in the hundreds of young people who have decided to spend their summer acquiring remarkable experiences in an extraordinary setting.

“Instead of going to the beach and hanging out at parties, they have chosen the value of saving lives and helping others in the State of Israel, and also they constitute an overseas reserve for Magen David Adom in times of emergency and disaster.

“We thank the program staff, who have been working with us in fruitful cooperation for 30 years, connecting Magen David Adom to outstanding and eager-to-learn youth from around the world.”

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Hana Levi Julian is a Middle East news analyst with a degree in Mass Communication and Journalism from Southern Connecticut State University. A past columnist with The Jewish Press and senior editor at Arutz 7, Ms. Julian has written for Babble.com, Chabad.org and other media outlets, in addition to her years working in broadcast journalism.