IDF as soldiers
Objective:
Provide a vocational solution for the young men and women with disabilities who have completed their education and ensure they maintain the confidence and independence they acquired at school.
The Method : Recruitment to serve as fully fledged soldiers.
The IDF military service starts with a short basic training program that includes team building and evaluation of skills, followed by placement in bases participating in the program of "Special in Uniform" of Yad LaYeled HaMeyuchad, "Lend a Hand to the Special Child" in bases such as the Air Force base at Palmachim, the Navy base in Eilat, the Homeland Security bases Ramla and Bilu, in various jobs compatible with their abilities.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z6XZBKXWO_w
In September 2016 already over 200 male and female soldiers with special needs and various degrees of disabilities serve in the IDF-"Special in Uniform" project.
When they enter the service the volunteer soldiers of "Special in Uniform" get the Unit beret and the Bible as all israeli soldiers get. We all serve in the same spirit. The entry ceremony is an emotional highlight in the lives of the young people and of their families.
The duration of the service is three years from age 21 to 24, at the end of which they receive a substantial release grant (as all soldiers get) and are integrated in the work force. It should be noted that their contribution to the army is tremendous and in some areas, even greater than that of regular soldiers. For example someautistic soldiers turned out to be exeptional experts in air picture interpretation! As of June 2014, the program has integrated 80 soldiers in two tracks: community based and home based. The following pictures illustrate examples of "Special in Uniform" participants in Navy, Air Force and Ground Forces: