Those are among the incentives for Ryan Paddock who quit his job at a Winnipeg convenience store to immigrate to Israel this month along with 400 other Canadians.

Some, like the 19-year-old Winnipegger, want to serve in Israel’s armed forces as the country embarks on a plan to withdraw from settlements in the Gaza Strip and parts of the West Bank.

Other Canadians are moving because they think that now, more than ever, Israel needs their help to stabilize the economy, grow businesses and strengthen the democratic process.

Mainly, Paddock says, he wants to be a paratrooper, have some adventure and hopefully meet a girl. And Israel wants him. The state and private donors are giving him thousands of dollars in grants to make the move. Tax breaks and free tuition are offered to Jews who immigrate to Israel, as well as deals on houses.

An organization called Nefesh B’Nefesh is rolling out the welcome mat in Canada, cutting red tape and helping people who want to move to Israel navigate the bureaucratic maze.

Nefesh B’Nefesh matches immigrants with housing and jobs in communities that suit their lifestyle. The three-year-old group is Paddock’s ticket to some real action, he said.

“The Canadian army doesn’t do much. It’s kind of small. I’d rather be part of an army that’s fighting for something,” he said.

“I’ve always wanted to learn another language and maybe I’ll meet someone. I’d like that.”

Paddock said he’s bored with Winnipeg and his convenience store job.

The perks Israel dangles in front of North American newcomers have become more enticing, said Josh Neuman, editor of Heeb, a Jewish pop-culture magazine.

“Free trips, falafels better than any you’ll find in North America,” he said. “They give you a gun (on joining the army), the women are beautiful. We shouldn’t be surprised the offer has so much appeal.”

Neuman says it’s also a chance to be part of history, to shape Israel as it moves toward a hoped-for peace with its plan to pull out of settlements.

The Canadian flight will arrive in Israel around the same time as a flight from New York’s JFK Airport, and the two planes will be greeted with a welcome ceremony by thousands of well-wishers, including Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and other government dignitaries.

Ira Robinson, a Jewish studies professor at Montreal’s Concordia University, said Canadian Jews who identify with the idea of Israel and are committed to growing a homeland have been deeply affected by instability in the region since 2000.

The Israeli government and Nefesh B’Nefesh are trying to boost North American aliyah.

Aliyah — Hebrew for ascent — refers to the migration of Jews to Israel. It used to be that so few people “made aliyah” from Canada that almost no one paid attention to them when tallying emigration totals from North America.

According to the Jewish Agency for Israel’s Toronto-based Israel Aliyah Center, which encourages Canadians to move to Israel, 3,000 people made aliyah from North America in 2004. Of those, 10 per cent — or 312 people — came from Canada.

It’s expected that about 450 of Canada’s 300,000 Jews will move to Israel by the end of this year. That’s up 35 per cent over 2004.

Boosting North American aliyah is a major goal of Israel because most Jews from this part of the world have some money, are educated and believe in democracy.