Among the passengers on a charter flight from New York to Israel Aug. 15 were 104 young men and women from North America who are making aliyah and will be serving in the Israel Defense Forces. Included in that group was Pikesville’s Yoella Diamant-Cohen, who will be following in the footsteps of her brother and sister.
Yoella, 18, attended the Shoshana S. Cardin School through her junior year, then graduated from Pikesville High School. She recently completed her Israeli army preparatory work through a program called Nachshon, according to her father, Stuart Diamant-Cohen, the Washington, D.C., regional director for the Jewish National Fund.
Yoella’s older brother, Alon Diamant-Cohen, 23, is in basic training in the Israeli army field intelligence unit. Alon is a graduate of Pikesville High School and the University of Maryland. Their sister, Maya Diamant-Cohen, 22, a graduate of the Cardin School, just completed her IDF military service as an education officer, which included a two-month volunteer stint at an orphanage in Uganda. After a just completed stint in Baltmore, she is back in Israel getting ready for her preparatory year at Hebrew University.
Why such a strong devotion to Israel? “All of our children were born in Israel and we have a home in Jerusalem,” says Stuart Diamant-Cohen, a native of England who lived in Israel for 20 years. His wife, Dr. Betsy Diamant-Cohen, is executive director of Mother Goose on the Loose, a literary educational service company, is from Stamford, Conn. She also lived in Israel for many years.
“We arrived in [the United States] 12 years ago and decided to stay for the sake of our kids’ education,” says Stuart. “One year turned into two years turned into 12 years. Their being in the army wasn’t part of the plan. They are children of immigrants returning to Israel, making aliyah.”
The proud dad says it was the children’s choice.
“It’s a mixture of pride and worry as a parent. What they are doing is the fulfillment of their education and what they want to do. They made their own decisions. We were not pushing them. It was their choice,” he says.
Says their mother: “I’m very, very proud of them. Although we moved to the States when they were very young, they maintained their connections with Israel and their friends. Judaism is important to them and they take their commitment to Israel seriously.”
She also expresses concern about Israel’s situation as her children live there. “I pray for peace. Nothing in life comes without risk, without risk,” she says. “Right now, professionally, the U.S. is a better place for me, but I miss my kids. If they are still there in a few years, we would probably go back.”
The trip that Yoella took was organized by Nefesh B’Nefesh and the Jewish Agency, in cooperation with the Israel Ministry of Immigrant Absorption, and sponsored by the Friends of IDF.
Nefesh B’Nefesh, founded in 2002, is dedicated to revitalizing aliyah from North America and the United Kingdom by removing or minimizing the financial, professional, logistical and social obstacles of aliyah. Established in 1929, the Jewish Agency was instrumental in the founding of the State of Israel and now works to ensure the future of a connected, committed, global Jewish people with a strong Israel at its center.
The Ministry of Immigrant Absorption is responsible for providing government assistance to new immigrants and to returning residents. The ministry assists immigrants from the day they
enter the country, striving to facilitate their full integration into every area of Israeli society.
Friends of the Israel Defense Forces initiates and helps support social, educational, cultural and recreational programs and facilities for the young men and women soldiers of Israel who defend the Jewish homeland. FIDF also provides support for the families of fallen soldiers.
Stacy Karten is a local freelance writer.