It is almost the end of 2008. In less than two months I will be on the plane back to Israel to do my part as a volunteer in Sar-el.  It will be  my forth  trip in four years and I can’t stop thinking about it.

As most other volunteers, we get asked WHY? My answer is usually simple and direct. I tell people that anyone can write out a check but to go Israel and physically work along with the soldiers and other volunteers is so incredibly fulfilling as a Jew, as a Zionist and as a believer in the State of Israel. When asked if I am scared when in Israel, I have another direct response. I ask the questioner if they have EVER heard of anybody that has come back from Israel as a volunteer or a tourist say they didn’t have a great time and they wouldn’t  go back?  The answer is always no.

The bond that one forms with the other Sarelnicks is almost instant. After all, we are all there to help.  The harder I work the better it feels. I always leave knowing that I helped in my own small way. The thousands of volunteers putting in loads of work hours, sleeping on thin mattresses and eating base food eases the burden on the Israeli Soldiers.

By Ken Schneider/ Rhode Island