More than 1,000 Lone Soldiers - the term for people who make Aliyah to serve in the IDF - benefited from on-site road tests as well as expedited bureaucratic processes, according to event holders.
On May 9, Nefesh B’Nefesh (NBN) and Friends of the IDF (FIDF), in conjunction with the Transportation Ministry, Road Safety’s Automobile License Authority and the IDF Human Resources Department, hosted the first-ever Lone Soldiers’ Driver’s License Conversion Day in Holon.
The event was organized with the aim of easing and accelerating the conversion of foreign driving licenses into local Israeli versions, which NBN and the FIDF stressed was essential given many soldiers have little free time to get it done.
Volunteer driving instructors helped out
According to NBN, 38 driving instructors lent their personal cars for the event, and professional driving testers and IDF driving instructors made themselves available to increase the number of test slots.
Each soldier was allocated one driving test, however they were able to take an additional test on the spot if they were not successful on the first attempt.
Volunteer instructors were on hand to provide refresher lessons for the soldiers before their road tests, as many of the soldiers had been serving in combat since October 7 and had no recent practical driving experience.
The initiative was led by the FIDF-Nefesh B’Nefesh Lone Soldier Program, which provides year-round support to Lone Soldiers during their new life and service in Israel.
Rabbi Yehoshua Fass, the Co-Founder and Executive Director of Nefesh B’Nefesh, said, "We are extremely proud to provide our heroes, these courageous men and women, this essential and time-consuming assistance during these challenging times”.
He continued, “Lone Soldiers have such limited, precious free time to care for their personal needs and as such, it is an honor for us to help them expedite their Israeli Driver’s licenses, which is an essential tool to enable further independence."
Steven Weil, the CEO of FIDF said: "It is our honor to support the courageous individuals who have relinquished the comforts of home, and put their futures on hold, to safeguard one of the world's most perilous and intricate regions.”
Transportation Minister, Brigadier General (Res) Miri Regev also expressed her support for the initiative and gratitude to the lone soldiers.