A Volunteer Love Story

A Volunteer Love Story:

“Love in the Land”

By  Janice Willner - NJ, USA

In 1976, at 18, I left Liverpool with my best friend to join an Ulpan at Maagan Michael. On our very first walk to the beach, we met two brothers from New York one of them would become my husband.

From the start, something clicked. Our whole group grew close, united by our love for Israel and the experience of learning and volunteering together, but with Philip the connection was instant and deeper.

Israel became one of the most meaningful chapters of my life because it’s where our story began. Even after returning home, Philip and I stayed in touch, and when we came back to Israel a couple of years later to volunteer again, we knew we decided to get married.

We built our life in England and then New York, raising two children and now enjoying five grandchildren, all while keeping our love for Israel at the center. We’ve returned many times, and since October 7th, we’ve gone back four times to volunteer however we can.

Israel gave us so much but most of all, it gave us each other ❤️