Yocheved Kim Ruttenberg was living in Dallas, Texas, and working in construction sales when she heard the news about the attacks in Israel on Oct. 7.
The Pikesville native and former Bais Yaakov student called her mother and explained that she needed to go to Israel, where her brother was serving in the Israel Defense Forces.
“I called my mom and said, ‘Mom, I want to go to Israel.’ And she said to me, ‘If you don’t go to Israel, you’ll regret it for the rest of your life.’ And that was literally all I needed to hear,” Ruttenberg said.
Ruttenberg booked her flight and fundraised enough to bring 23 large duffle bags of supplies with her on the trip, which was initially scheduled to be two weeks long.
But once Ruttenberg was on the ground, she quickly realized that she wasn’t going home anytime soon, so she canceled her flight and quit her job.
That decision was the beginning of an 18-month journey for Ruttenberg that led to her making aliyah and founding the Sword of Iron Israel Volunteer Corp, the largest network supporting volunteers in Israel.
“Many people knew that I was in Israel. They knew I was helping out with supplies because I had raised money for them, and I ended up staying at a friend’s house who was dealing with supplies and getting them to bases. So, people knew I was getting involved in Israel, and everybody started reaching out to me,” Ruttenberg said.
The network started out as a Facebook group organized with a Google Doc, and it has since blossomed into a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit with over 43,000 volunteers from 28 countries.
Ruttenberg said that she saw a need for assistance in various areas of Israeli society after the onset of the war, but especially so with farmers, as over 100,000 workers had been called into military service or lost their work visas.
The IVC stepped in and helped organize volunteer crop harvesters, and a press release from the organization states that its efforts helped save $50 million worth of produce.
As the organization grew, Ruttenberg said there was a need to create a volunteer database and resources for people looking to come to Israel to get involved.
That became especially true as the organization continually expanded its horizons with new volunteer opportunities, including supporting soldier rehabilitation, meal distribution, animal rescue and home rebuilding.
“Our whole thing is really supporting volunteers start to finish in this process. How do you go and tell your family that you want to come volunteer in a war zone? What does that look like? What are the talking points when you’re here? What apps do you use? How do you book a flight? Where do you stay?” Ruttenberg said.
She added that the IVC has become something of a household brand in the Israel volunteering space in the last year and a half and is able to advise volunteers based on their range of experiences.
Ruttenberg said IVC’s work is helping to bring volunteers from around the world to Israel from a range of backgrounds, including non-Jews, people who have never been to Israel, people who haven’t been in decades and more.
And her efforts since moving to Israel have earned her recognition from Hadassah on its most recent “18 American Zionist Women You Should Know” list.
“It’s just always so surreal to be publicly recognized for the work that we do. It’s such a privilege and an honor, and I’m so excited. Any kind of publicity allows us to continue doing our work even more, because it means that more people know about what we do — and more people will come volunteer,” Ruttenberg said.
And this work has been life-changing for Ruttenberg as she has found a new passion, purpose, friends and a deeper connection with her Judaism.
Ruttenberg said that she was raised in a religious household but lost some connection with Jewish community from age 10 until she went on Birthright at 18. Even while living in Texas, she felt alone, like she didn’t fit in and had nowhere to go.
“[Now] I understand myself more. I understand where I come from. I feel like I finally have a place in this world. And I think that’s probably the biggest shift,” Ruttenberg said. “I’m taking aspects of my old life into my new life. I was in sales. I was door knocking. Now I’m fundraising … but every single day, I’m challenged in new ways that I didn’t imagine before.”
With the war continuing and the need for volunteering still high, Ruttenberg is excited to still be growing and evolving as an organization.
She added that she loves being able to help bring people together who otherwise might never have come to Israel.
“My dream is that our organization is not only able to help actual initiatives on the ground and forever change the way that people interact with Israel and interact with Israelis, and how Israelis interact with foreigners, and bridging that gap, but also bringing people together from around the world who otherwise wouldn’t meet or be friends or come together,” Ruttenberg said.
I regularly go to Israel and volunteer. I was there Oct 7 and since then I’ve been back multiple times for approximately 175-200 days total.
A friend of mine, who lives in Baltimore saw this article and asked for my response. I decided to also share it here.
I am a member of the Facebook page. AND, like what I am sure are the vast vast vast majority of members have never done anything through the group. I find my volunteer activities through a myriad of WhatsApp groups and word of mouth. Groups I’ve gone to before, I speak with them directly. In fact some of the activities posted on Facebook, I’ve seen with earlier posting dates on some of the WhatsApp groups. The article refers to thousands of volunteers doing things. Yet, there is zero explanation as to how these numbers were derived. If I go somewhere to volunteer and there are others there from Yocheved-do I get counted as part of her group?
I was somewhat dismayed to see that the page is now being used to collect money. There is zero accountability as to where these funds are being distributed and what percentage may go to operating expenses and stipends. I’d love to see an organization like charity navigator rate them. It’s not that hard to get 501 (c) (3) status. It’s harder to get 4 stars from someone like Charity Navigator.
Bottom line, what she does is good. But , should it be treated as unique and extraordinary- I do not think so.
Yocheved’s facebook group has been invaluable to the tens of thousands of people around the world who want to help Israel but have no idea how to go about it. It makes it possible for people wanting to volunteer to actually come and do something meaningful, without having to join an expensive organized group. Her facebook group answered my questions about where to stay, how to volunteer on farms, where to cook for soldiers,…it allowed me to find an opportunity to make tzitzit for soldiers…to walk dogs at a humane society…all kinds of amazing opportunities to be of use that I would never have known about without her. It also made it possible for me to connect with other volunteers, so I didn’t feel socially isolated while in Israel on my own. Yocheved has filled a vital need in a crucial time that no one else was filling. Are you handy with a hammer? Her facebook group will let you easily find where to help rebuild a shattered kibbutz. Are you a massage therapist? She can connect you with a soldiers’ rest stop or a Nova therapy group to put your talents to use. There is no other organization where anyone can go to, no matter what their talent, religion, age or income, and find just the perfect volunteer opportunity. This article is an awesome tribute to a wonderful woman who has done so much for Israel. Kol haKavod to Yocheved.
Rebecca Sage, praising an incredible heroine who has done something so important and extraordinary does not take away from anybody else’s good deeds. You have zero idea how incredibly helpful Yocheved’s facebook group has been to the tens of thousands of people around the world who want to help Israel but have no idea how to go about it. It makes it possible for people wanting to volunteer to actually come and do something meaningful, without having to join an expensive organized group. Her facebook group answered my questions about where to stay, how to volunteer on farms, where to cook for soldiers,…it allowed me to find an opportunity to make tzitzit for soldiers…to walk dogs at a humane society…all kinds of amazing opportunities to be of use that I would never have known about without her. It also made it possible for me to connect with other volunteers, so I didn’t feel socially isolated while in Israel on my own. Yocheved filled a vital need in a crucial time that no one else was filling. Are you handy with a hammer? Her facebook group will let you easily find where to help rebuilt a shattered kibbutz. Are you a massage therapist? She can connect you with a soldiers’ group or a Nova group to put your talents to use. There is no other group where anyone can go to, no matter what your talent, religion, age or income, and find just the perfect volunteer opportunity. This article is an awesome tribute to a wonderful woman who has done so much for Israel. Kol haKavod to Yocheved.
This is hardly the largest Jewish volunteer organization. It isnt an organization, it has no status other than a Facebook page. The biggest volunteer organizations are Hadassa and Emunah, have we forgotten about them? And dozens of others over Israel’s storied tale of struggles and resulting resilience.
Sword of Iron is the only volunteer group that monetized itself in the space of a few short months, with no evidence of resulting charitable donations.
It is hard for anyone to think that Yocheved shot up to the prize winning status caliber of Hadassa Women who matter when she spent a few short months making a Facebook page. There are women twice her age who have saved people’s lives in so many ways and will never win a prize. They volunteer altruistically and quietly. Perhaps the Jewish Times can look at her Facebook page and rethink this article?