Nefesh B’Nefesh schedules mega event in Manhattan

Nefesh B’Nefesh schedules mega event in Manhattan

Photo from last year’s NBN event. (Courtesy NBN)
Photo from last year’s NBN event. (Courtesy NBN)

The annual Nefesh B’Nefesh Mega Event in Manhattan will be on February 26 at John Jay College in Manhattan. An estimated 1,500 potential olim (immigrants), the largest number ever, are expected to attend the aliyah fair, where they can learn about moving to Israel and have their questions answered by professionals from all sectors of Israeli life and society.

The Nefesh B’Nefesh fair is the prelude to its aliyah fair road tours, called “Imagine Greater Possibilities,” which will visit Toronto, Montreal, and Los Angeles. All the fairs are co-hosted by Nefesh B’Nefesh, Israel’s Ministry of Aliyah and Immigrant Absorption, the Jewish Agency for Israel, Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael, and JNF-USA.

Participants will be able to choose from more than 50 sessions, workshops, and one-on-one meetings with Israeli organizations and aliyah professionals, on topics ranging from home buying and education to professional licensing and health insurance. Eight Israeli municipalities will be represented at the fair, providing a snapshot of life across the country.

Some of the people at the fair are likely just to have begun considering aliyah; for others the fair provides the important last pieces that allowed them to finalize their plans. From meetings with accountants to financial planners, shippers, and a host of Israeli vendors, participants will be briefed on a broad range of matters associated with moving to Israel.

This year, as a response to a rising number of medical professionals interested in moving to Israel, representatives from seven hospitals and four healthcare providers will be coming to help recruit doctors to join their staff. Representatives of Israel’s Health Ministry will be on hand to offer on-the-spot licensing and professional consultations.

There are many reasons for the increase in interest among Jews in moving to Israel, ranging from the political environment in the United States to the booming tech scene in Israel.

“We have continuously seen a rise in aliyah interest from North America in recent years, so much so that we had to move the Mega Event to a college campus to accommodate and ensure every interested individual and family gets the attention and information they need,” said Rabbi Yehoshua Fass, Nefesh B’Nefesh’s co-founder and executive director. “Now we have the ability to provide additional programming for children, significantly more sessions on aliyah planning as well as an Israeli themed food market.”

For more information, go to www.nbn.org.il/mega-event.

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