New York, NY –Yizkereim: Honor Israel’s Fallen, a project of Olami in partnership with The Afikim Foundation and Israel’s Ministry of the Diaspora, is preparing for Israel’s 70th anniversary by remembering the 23,632 people who died defending and protecting the State of Israel.

Honor Israel’s Fallen is a project that allows participants to choose a soldier or member of Israel’s security forces from www.HonorIsraelsFallen.com to learn about the deceased, and perform a positive action– an act of kindness, service, learning, prayer, or tzedaka (charity)– and post about it on the website as well as on social media. In this way, families of the fallen will see the deeds performed on behalf of their loved ones on the website.

On social media, participants will tag friends and challenge them to participate as well, thereby exponentially increasing participants, much like the Ice Bucket Challenge to increase awareness of ALS in the summer of 2014. A virtual candle displays on each hero’s page for every action pledged, and a digital file of all actions will be kept at Mount Herzl, the site of Israel’s national cemetery and other memorial and educational facilities.

Israel is important wherever you live. Yizkereim: Honor Israel’s Fallen is an opportunity for people around the world to show their support and appreciation, and to put aside differences and come together to honor those who died to get where we are today.

About Olami:
Olami is a global community of organizations committed to inspiring young adults to achieve their Jewish greatness through Jewish learning and practice. Our partnering programs fuse both informal and formal Jewish education modules to create an engaging, inspiring and motivating environment for further Jewish engagement. Olami member organizations offer a wide range of opportunities for student transformation and identification through text study, experiential engagement, and educational trips to Israel. For a full list of member organizations, go to www.olami.org/partners

About Yizkereim: Honor Israel’s Fallen:
Yizkereim is a project of Olami, in partnership with The Afikim Foundation and Israel’s Ministry of the Diaspora to remember Israel’s fallen soldiers and security forces, when we will joyously celebrate the 70th anniversary of Israel. We must remember that without the 23,632 men and women who sacrificed their lives defending and protecting our land, we would not be privileged to celebrate 70 years of our Jewish State. We are obligated to perpetuate their memories. Yizkereim enables us to meaningfully pay tribute to each one of these fallen heroes.