Dozens of volunteers, many of them in their 60s, 70s, and 80s, landed at Ben Gurion airport in April to volunteer to help the IDF, as part of the Sar-El program. An unusual scene unfolded at the airport as pensioners from the United States landed in Israel to report for duty for the IDF. The volunteers, both Jews and Christians, told Ynetnews they received a sense of fulfillment from their physical contribution, adding that the satisfaction was far greater than giving financial donations to Israel. Their help took the form of logistical aid, and volunteers were placed on non-combat army bases, Sar-El's Executive General Manager, Israel Geva, told Ynetnews. The program began in 1982, in the wake of the first Lebanon War, when General Aharon Davidi (then in charge of the Paratroopers and Infantry Corps), sent friends to the US to act as recruitment staff. Some 650 people volunteered to help the IDF as a result. Since then, volunteers have arrived in Israel every year to help out. Leo Gold, an 82 year-old volunteer, said he had no problems with the physical nature of the task. When he told members of his synagogue congregation of his actions, they were awed, Gold said.