Jerusalem - On Monday, The Minister of Social Affairs and Social Services, Meir Cohen, presented a certificate of appreciation to the teenagers with disabilities who volunteer as part of the national service program at United Hatzalah. The young volunteers were excited to receive a special United Hatzalah pin as well as a certificate from the Minister. The commendation came in recognition of all the tireless work that they do managing logistical activities and helping the volunteers of the EMS organization who respond to nearly 2,000 medical emergencies on a daily basis.

The ceremony took place as part of the visit by Minister Cohen to the national headquarters of United Hatzalah in Jerusalem. The visit was led by the organization's CEO Eli Polak, Chairman Moshe Teitelbaum, VP of Operations Dov Meisel, and the head of administrative relations Shavei Rapaport. The leadership of the organization told the Minister about the instrumental and crucial activities performed regularly by the national service volunteers and how they assist the organization’s goal of providing a quick and comprehensive response to emergency incidents. The Minister was impressed by the fact that the organization's volunteers come from all walks of life in Israel and that Jews and Arabs, secular and ultra-Orthodox, and others, work together to save lives each day.

Minister Cohen said, "I thank United Hatzalah for the tour and for the opportunity to meet the people who do sacred work around the clock and the opportunity to see in real-time how an emergency incident is managed from both the volunteer’s and the dispatch’s perspectives. I was especially excited to meet the teenagers with disabilities who volunteer for the organization.”

United Hatzalah’s CEO Eli Polak added, "We thank the minister for the visit and his kind words. We are thankful for our partnership with the Ministry of Welfare and Social Services and lok forward to continuing to provide a place where people with disabilities can come and contribute to saving lives in Israel. We look forward to expanding the collaborations between Israeli citizens who come from different and diverse backgrounds who all work toward the same goal of saving lives. This is something, whose importance we can all agree upon no matter who we are or where we come from, every life is sacred.”