Volunteering to work on a Israeli Defense Forces
Supply Base

My adventure began on May 20, 2005, when I flew to Israel, from the USA, for the forth time. All of my previous trips to Israel had been on organized tours, which are really a great way to be introduced to this wonderful country, but, this time, I wanted to contribute something to help the nation and people of Israel; my labor and sweat. I am not Jewish, but I hold a reverent interest, a fascination really, in Israel, because Israel is the backdrop of the Torah, and other scriptures. Without those faithful Jewish scribes, stubbornly, and accurately copying the scriptures, I would not know anything about the wonderful stories of the faithful, like, King David, Joshua, Abraham and Moses. Or about the God of Israel, the One True God,  that is revealed in the Torah. To visit the locations told about in the scriptures, is an amazing thing. Anybody can read about the Dead Sea Scrolls, but think about actually seeing the place that they were discovered, or, actually look at the rolled out scroll of Isaiah that is over 2,000 years old, fantastic! 

During the month of my stay, I worked on two different bases, one was a brand new general supply base in the north, and another, a small medical supply base not far from Tel Aviv. I was fortunate enough to be on my Sar El tour during Israeli Independence day, and time was taken at the base to commemorate the event with a traditional toast to the fallen soldiers of Israel. In addition, we had an eternal flame at the base for a couple of days that was "guarded" (more like honored) around the clock. Us volunteers were allowed to participate in the guarding of the flame along with the regular soldiers. I considered guarding the flame to be a special honor for sure, and one that I will not soon forget. The work was exactly as advertised, menial, but while menial, there was a good variety of different tasks to accomplish, and, because there were many helping hands, we accomplished a lot. Because we felt that our work was valuable, we felt good about what we were doing.

The regular soldiers made us feel welcome, and they seemed at times to be somewhat amazed that folks from all over the world would come to help them; they oftentimes showed their appreciation. Each evening, we had a lecture by our Madrichot or sometimes, by a special guest speaker. The lectures or demonstrations were usually interesting, and most often fun.  I went on 3 Sar El field trips. We had a special guide that went with us as we toured different places in Israel such as, Jerusalem, Safad, and Zikhron Yaaqov. One weekend, I went on one of the special tours arranged by Pam, the Sar El coordinator. I had such a wonderful time on this extra tour meeting people from other Sar El bases, and seeing several places in Israel that I had never been to before. The extra tour was definitely worth the additional money.