Thousands of kilometers away: how lone soldiers were surprised on their birthdays

A special gesture for lone soldiers took place in recent days in the north, when IDF soldiers received a surprise on their birthdays — personal packages sent by their family members.

Behind the initiative is the "Otzma Le-Chayal" project, which operates in cooperation with the WOMMYZ community in Los Angeles to bridge the distance between lone soldiers in Israel and their families overseas. As part of the collaboration, family members prepared personal gifts, small surprises, and moving messages in advance and sent them to Israel.

Volunteers of the project delivered the packages directly to the bases. Alongside the gifts, vouchers, treats, and, above all, a sense of connection to home awaited the soldiers, even when it is on the other side of the world.

For the soldiers, some of whom have not seen their families for many months, this was an especially emotional moment.

"It was a small hug from home," one of the soldiers said after the surprise. "Something that reminds you that you are not alone."

Avraham Yehezkel, director of the "Otzma Le-Chayal" project, spoke about the moving experience:

"There are moments when you understand that a gift is much more than what is inside the package. When a soldier is here alone, while their family is thousands of kilometers away, we want to be the hand that connects them."

According to him, the families in Los Angeles sent their love, and the volunteers had the privilege of delivering it. "Seeing the excitement in their eyes at the moment of the surprise is hard to describe in words. From our perspective, no soldier should feel alone," he added.

This initiative joins a series of activities designed to support lone soldiers, reminding us that even in a reality of distance, human connection manages to bridge any gap.