Nefesh B’Nefesh, the organization that facilitates Aliyah from North America, in cooperation with the Ministry of Aliyah and Integration, The Jewish Agency for Israel, Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael and JNF-USA, is celebrating a record-breaking year in Aliyah.
As Israel celebrates Aliyah Week, Nefesh B’Nefesh continues to reflect on the incredible year for Aliyah thus far. According to the Aliyah organization, 3280 new Olim have made Aliyah from North America since January of 2021. Among the new Olim were 643 families, 755 singles and 281 retirees. The organization is well on its way to hit its expected target of 4500 Olim for 2021.
The majority of Olim have hailed from New York, New Jersey, California, Florida and Maryland with Jerusalem, Beit Shemesh, Tel Aviv – Yafo, Ra’anana and Modiin as the top destinations for starting their new lives in Israel.
Rabbi Yehoshua Fass, Co-Founder and Executive Director of Nefesh B’Nefesh, shared the following special message in honor of Aliyah Week:
“This past year has been no less challenging than the previous one, but despite everything, Aliyah has not stopped, but rather has increased and flourished. I would like to commend each and every one of our Olim, for their resilience and strength and for making this courageous step during the height of a global pandemic and so much uncertainty. We excitedly predict to end 2021 with a record number of about 4,500 new Olim from North America and are proud to have been part of each and every Aliyah journey, together with our partners.”
To view the video message: Rabbi Fass Video Message
Two lifelong childhood friends, Dalia and Becca (24) made Aliyah from New York and Chicago respectively this week, and were among hundreds of new Olim from around the world who arrived surrounding Aliyah Week. They added:
“We have known one another since the age of five, and even after we moved to different places for university, we always stayed close. Growing up, Israel was always a place we felt at home and it has been a dream for each of us to move here. Now, after living apart for many years, we are so excited to finally be moving to Tel Aviv together. We are very excited to start this next chapter in our lives.”
