“We’re not running away from America, we’re running to Israel.” That is how Avi Lichtschein, 39, a father of three from Manhattan who is set to make aliyah this summer, describes his family’s decision.
Around him, in a sprawling backyard in New Jersey filled with picnic tables, strollers, children running across the grass and families gathered around information booths, hundreds of North American Jews came to receive final guidance before relocating to Israel. Some had already packed up their homes. Others were still completing paperwork, searching for jobs or exploring schools for their children. Yet one theme surfaced repeatedly: alongside their lifelong connection to Israel, something had changed in recent years in the way they experience Jewish life in the United States.
7 View gallery
Families from across North America attended the event ahead of their aliyah in the coming months
(Photo: Shahar Azran)
With many participants describing the feeling that this has become the right moment to turn a long-standing dream into reality.
Despite Israel’s ongoing security challenges and the complex reality since the outbreak of war, interest among North American Jews seeking to begin a new chapter in Israel remains strong. Against this backdrop, Nefesh B’Nefesh officially launched its Summer 2026 Aliyah Season this month with two major aliyah events held in New Jersey and Toronto.
The New Jersey gathering was designed as a community-focused, informal event featuring a barbecue, family activities, opportunities for future immigrants to meet one another, and practical information and counseling ahead of the move to Israel.
The aliyah events were organized by Nefesh B’Nefesh in partnership with Israel’s Ministry of Aliyah and Integration, the Jewish Agency for Israel, Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael and Jewish National Fund-USA. More than 450 people attended the New Jersey event, followed by another 200 participants in Toronto. Among them were individuals, couples and entire families planning to make aliyah within the coming months.
Senior officials in attendance included Dganit Sanker-Lange, Director General of the Ministry of Aliyah and Integration; Yohanan Mali, Director General of the Ministry for the Negev, Galilee and National Resilience; Ruvik Shemesh, Director General of the Ministry of Labor; Eran Berkowitz, Director of the Aliyah and Integration Unit at the Jewish Agency; as well as Nefesh B’Nefesh founders Rabbi Yehoshua Fass and Tony Gelbart.
Thousands of new olim expected this summer
Participants enjoyed community activities, live music and opportunities to connect with others going through similar stages of the aliyah process. Most importantly, they received practical information about the transition. Nefesh B’Nefesh aliyah advisors were on hand, alongside representatives from government ministries, the Jewish Agency, Israeli communities, employers and service providers who support immigrants before and after their move.
7 View gallery
Barbecue, children’s activities, information booths and conversations about Israel’s future: Summer 2026 aliyah season opens
(Photo: Shahar Azran)
According to Nefesh B’Nefesh, approximately 2,300 new immigrants from North America are expected to arrive in Israel between June and September 2026. The group includes roughly 500 families who will travel on 47 designated aliyah flights departing from various locations across the United States. Teams from Nefesh B’Nefesh, the Ministry of Aliyah and Integration and the Jewish Agency will accompany them throughout the entire process, from preparation to arrival and absorption in Israel.
Throughout the day, conversations focused on family, identity, community, career transitions and the practical realities of building a life in Israel. Many participants spoke about raising children in the Jewish homeland and becoming part of Israel’s future.
‘We want our children to be Israeli’
Lichtschein, a New York native who grew up in New Jersey and now lives in Manhattan, is scheduled to move to Israel in about two months with his wife, Katie, and their three children: Reina, 5½; Yehuda, 3½; and six-month-old Bayla.
“There is no other place in the world where we want to raise our children with the love, kindness, Torah and sense of brotherhood that exist in Israel,” he says. “Our children are still young enough for Israeli identity to become part of who they are. We want them to be Israeli from day one.”
He says the decision was driven by long-term thinking about his children’s future.
“There are maybe two decisions in life that affect you and future generations: whom you marry and where you raise your children. We decided that we would be the ones to face the challenges of immigration and adjustment so our children can grow up fully Israeli.”
Lichtschein studied at a yeshiva in Israel and spent extended periods in the country. For years, aliyah represented the fulfillment of a Zionist dream. But since October 7, conversations about Jewish identity and Israel have become more prominent in daily life. He says, it reinforced our belief that Israel is where we want to build our future.
‘My soul was calling me’
For Shulamit Miriam Rotenstreich, 47, of New Jersey, the aliyah journey began long before the war. This August, she plans to move to Israel with her husband and their 17-year-old son. One daughter is already serving as a lone soldier in Jerusalem, while another is expected to move to Israel soon.
Rotenstreich travels frequently to Israel and has built a large social media following where she discusses lifestyle, wellness, personal growth, spirituality and Israel.
But her story began much earlier.
“I grew up without religion and without a meaningful Jewish connection,” she recalls. “I was searching for spiritual answers. I traveled to India, explored Buddhism and constantly felt something was missing. Then I came to Israel at 19 and suddenly felt: these are my people. This is where I’m supposed to be.”
Despite building a successful life in the United States, the feeling never left her.
“I had every reason to stay. My family is here, I have a good life, I make a good living. I don’t even speak Hebrew. But eventually I realized that my soul was calling me there.”
For her family, aliyah has already become a broader family journey.
“My daughter who serves in Jerusalem is just waiting for us to arrive,” she says. “She keeps telling us, ‘Mom and Dad are coming home.’”
Rotenstreich does not hide her excitement, nor her fears.
“I’ve lived in the same place for 21 years,” she says. “But my heart has always been there.”
‘We’re waiting to feel like we belong’
Another family attending the event was the Westrich family. Uri, 40, and Dina, 36, from New Jersey, are planning to move to Jerusalem this August with their three children: Nathan, 3½; Abigail, 18 months; and Yael, one month old.
Dina is a pediatrician who has already completed the process of transferring her medical license to Israel through the International Medical Aliyah Program (IMAP), an initiative led by Nefesh B’Nefesh in partnership with Israel’s Ministries of Aliyah and Integration; Health; the Negev, Galilee, and National Resilience; and the Jewish Agency for Israel. She plans to join the healthcare system after improving her Hebrew. Uri is a filmmaker who will continue some projects remotely while hoping to establish himself within Israel’s film industry.
For the couple, aliyah is ultimately about belonging, identity, and creating the future they envision for their family.
The family plans to begin their life in Israel in Jerusalem.
“We want to first understand where it makes the most sense for us to settle,” they explain. “Jerusalem is a good starting point.”
As the move approaches, the couple speaks most about the sense of belonging they hope to find.
7 View gallery
Nefesh B’Nefesh opens summer 2026 aliyah season with major events in New Jersey and Toronto
(Photo: Shahar Azran)
“I feel that our children are Israeli, and that Israel is their home,” Dina says. “I’m especially excited about the idea of them growing up speaking Hebrew.”
Uri looks forward to something even simpler.
“I’m waiting for the day when we can walk down the street and feel that we belong, that we are wanted, and that we don’t have to hide anything about who we are.”
A strong aliyah season despite the war
According to Nefesh B’Nefesh, nearly 100,000 immigrants from North America have moved to Israel through the organization since its founding in 2002. The organization says that approximately 90% remain in Israel long term.
The new immigrants are expected to settle across the country, including in Jerusalem, Tel Aviv-Yafo, Beit Shemesh, Ra’anana, Modi’in-Maccabim-Re’ut and Haifa. Some will also choose to relocate to the Negev and Galilee through the Go Beyond initiative, a joint program of Nefesh B’Nefesh and KKL-JNF designed to encourage aliyah to those regions.
“The summer aliyah season represents a meaningful moment both for the immigrants and for the State of Israel,” said Rabbi Yehoshua Fass, co-founder and executive director of Nefesh B’Nefesh. “It is especially moving to see hundreds of olim taking this significant step and beginning their aliyah journey together — a journey that will ultimately make them an important part of shaping Israel’s future.”
For Lichtschein, Rotenstreich and the Westrich family, aliyah is no longer a distant dream. It means leaving behind family and friends, changing careers, adapting to a new language, navigating bureaucracy and confronting countless uncertainties.
Yet throughout every conversation at the event, one idea surfaced again and again: the feeling that the time has come to come home.
The writer was a guest of Nefesh B’Nefesh in New Jersey.