Israeli Combat Boots

Living Among Israeli Soldiers While Wearing Israeli Military Boots

There is a new volunteer organization that plans to show others how Israeli soldiers live.  The organization is quickly becoming popular and has many new recruits on a frequent basis.  This program pairs regular civilians with Israeli soldiers and provides them with Israeli combat boots for their three week adventure of shadowing the soldiers.  These volunteers learn how to take care of many different types of army equipment.  They actually know how to repair, clean, and sort this equipment. 

The program is hands on and the volunteers are from the United States, particularly Philadelphia.  During the past ten years that the program has ran there have been nearly five hundred volunteers.  Each of the volunteers have returned home and promoted the program saying that they had learned so much. 

The volunteers have come to learn many things about the Israeli army and have a newfound respect for the Israeli soldiers.  This is one step in the right direction towards tolerance of all people.  This is one of those things that can be seen in a number of different functions but most notably is seen through their ability to return to the states and tell others about their experience.  One of the most monumental moments in the journey is when they first arrive and are given a pair of Israeli combat boots to wear.  It is through wearing these boots that the individuals in the program begin to feel as though they are part of the army and that they too could be a soldier if in these situations. 

Each person that has returned home from the journey continues to talk about the experience and how this one journey has so changed their lives for the better.  Perhaps all people could learn something from this experience and there are definitely those who should take advantage of the opportunity when it presents itself.  The Israeli army is really quite different than how it is pictured by the majority of Americans.  All of the soldiers in the army are volunteers and they are fighting for something that they believe in.  This is very much like those who are soldiers in the United States army.

Further each person in the army has many of the same regulations and requirements.  The Israeli combat boots must be shined just as the American combat boots are.  There is also a set uniform and each person must take control of a certain part of the missions to make them successful.  The Israeli army really works as a team and while spending your time as a part of them you will learn teamwork better than you could anywhere else.  Still the most important factor that is learned through an experience like this where you put on your own Israeli combat boots and walk along side the soldiers to help them and learn from them, is tolerance.  Tolerance is something that can be used on a daily basis and something these volunteers are learning to teach to others in order to influence them as well.