A total of 345 New Jersey residents immigrated to Israel in 2018—including 40 families, 132 singles, 76 children under the age of 17 and 44 future IDF lone soldiers—according to year-end figures released by Nefesh B’Nefesh, the organization dedicated to removing or minimizing the financial, professional, logistical and social obstacles of aliyah.

The olim from New Jersey, who range in age from 4 months to 93 years, make up approximately 10 percent of the 3,546 immigrants to Israel from North America during 2018. Over the course of the past five years, more than 2,000 New Jerseyans have made aliyah.

New Jersey’s new olim during 2018 moved to more than 30 different communities across Israel, ranging from major cities to kibbutzim, and from the country’s center to its periphery.

Since its founding in 2002, Nefesh B’Nefesh—in cooperation with Israel’s Ministry of Aliyah and Integration, The Jewish Agency for Israel, Keren Kayemeth Le’Israel and JNF-USA—has facilitated the aliyah of over 57,000 North Americans. The support and comprehensive social services provided by Nefesh B’Nefesh to its newcomers has ensured that 90 percent of those olim have remained in Israel.