Immigration & Absorption

At Home Together -Israeli Families Adopting New Olim

Tremendous personal, emotional and practical challenges  face new immigrants in Israel. They must learn a new language, adopt  to a new culture and sometimes gain a new profession. The groundbreaking At Home Together program was developed to ease the absorption process for families, single immigrants, lone soldiers and students.

At Home Together recruits Israeli families as volunteers to adopt newcomers during their first two years in Israel. New immigrants are given a critical social network - a gateway to jobs and acculturation.

The program was established in 2003, in conjunction with the Ministry of Immigrant Absorption and the Council for Local Authorities. It brings together new immigrants with veteran Olim families and native Israelis, on an individual basis, based on common background, language, education or employment.

The on-going interaction provides a firm infrastructure for the social absorption of new immigrants and serves as an invaluable social and professional network during their first stages of adjustment.

At the same time, the program has raised awareness of the importance of Aliyah in the social consciousness of the Israeli public. As a result, veteran Israelis are becoming more active in the absorption process.

The impact of At Home Together is impressive. It has created a framework through which new immigrants develop friendships with someone close by who is familiar with the local aspects of life. Adopting families assist newcomers in learning about schools for their children, finding housing and employment and engaging in cultural and social  opportunities. They also help deal with bureaucratic challenges and help make the Aliyah process a smooth one.

Within the framework of At Home Together the paired families participate in a variety of recreational, social, cultural and enrichment activities. These activities serve as a basis for facilitating continuous and direct contact between the participants.

In addition to mobilizing Israeli volunteers, At Home Together has established a Public Council that has attracted key players in Israeli society. Ofra Strauss, Chair of the Strauss-Elite Group, Annastasia Michaeli, a popular TV journalist, basketball pioneer Tal Brody and Yehoram Gaon, a household name in entertainment, are some of the people who have come on board to expand the project’s capabilities and horizons.

A donation of US $7,500 will enable 25 new immigrant families to be adopted by Israeli families. Donate Now!