Shalom,

As a veteran of the Sar-El program, and a resident of the U.S., we invite you to continue your volunteerism with Sar-El in the capacity of a “Sar-El Associate” even as you return to daily life in your part of the world.  Based on your experience with Sar-El, you’re in a good position to talk with people about what to expect when they participate in our program.

As an Associate, you will play a very important role in our volunteer network. We will look to you to assist us in spreading the word about the Sar-El Program, and you will be an alternative point of contact through which prospective volunteers join the program. Associates are involved in all phases of the application process described below.

The application process and your role in it:

1. General recruitment – this means discussing the Sar-El program at every opportunity and increasing awareness in your community of this unique volunteer program.
2. Distributing and reviewing completed application materials from prospective volunteers, including physician’s comments.
3. Conducting the interviews.
4. Accepting or rejecting applicants based on the documentation provided and the interview. This is a HUGE responsibility, and Associates should contact me should there be any questions.
5. Sending the necessary paperwork to Israel either by fax, e-mail or mail, and following up with any arrival detail changes.
6. Conducting a post-volunteer interview/survey and following-up with me regarding complaints or compliments.
7. Maintaining a file (for at least a year) on each of the processed volunteers of all documentation.
8. Maintaining a good relationship with Sar-El staff and doing your part for two-way communication of relevant issues, policies, and procedures.

In order for this new application procedure to be successful, each Associate must take his role very seriously. Making a decision with respect to a prospective volunteer is not easy. It is up to you to communicate with the volunteer to determine his/her “fitness for duty”, mentally and physically, and to provide him/her with a realistic expectation of life on the base, including food, living quarters, work assignments, etc. For all applicants, you must particularly emphasize that proselytizing is strictly prohibited and will result in immediate dismissal from the program.  Proselytizing includes discussing one's religion with someone who doesn't have the same beliefs as you in a manner which is intended to be persuasive or which is offensive.  This includes distributing any religious literature.  If you ever have doubts or questions about a prospective volunteer, contact me before your approval or disapproval. The most important thing is that you must be organized, and must send me the proper and current information as requested in the documents.

Benefits to you as an Associate:

1. A continuation of your connection with Sar-El and Israel, and an opportunity to do some volunteer work from home.
2. You can self-process your own application forms, apply directly to Sar-El Israel, and bypass centralized processing.
3. The opportunity to demonstrate your solidarity with Israel.

We at Sar-El are very excited about this new application procedure. We hope it will make things easier for the volunteers, lessen the costs, encourage more people like you to get involved, and spread the word about the Sar-El program.

If you are interested in becoming a Sar-El Associate, e-mail a letter of interest to: pamela@sar-el.org stating when and where you have participated in Sar-El. We will e-mail you a complete package of forms and instructions for processing applications.

If you need any further information, please contact me. I look forward to working with you in your role as a Sar-El Associate.

Pamela Lazarus, Program Coordinator
pamela@sar-el.org
sar_el@netvision.net.il.
(011972) 52-821-9945 (cell)
(In Israel) 052-821-9945 (cell)
(011972) 3-6817442 (office)
(011972) 3-6819098 (fax)

Please visit our website at www.sar-el.org.