Emanuel and Maayan Olegin from Holon are 20-year-old twin sisters. Maayan enlisted into the IDF’s Medical Corps, while her sister Emanuel, who’s an amputee and suffers from learning disabilities, received an exemption from the military, but didn’t give up on her desire to serve.
After a long process, she volunteered for the IDF through its Special in Unifrom special needs program, headed by the IDF and the Jewish National Fund-USA, in an emotional ceremony during which her sister surprised her at the event and presented her with her dog tag.
Miri Gettenyu, the twins' mother, recounted at the ceremony: " One morning, three years ago, I opened the mailbox to find two similar envelopes, both bearing the IDF insignia. When we opened them, my heart sank, because one contained a call-up order for Maayan, while the other was an automatic exemption for Emanuel.”
"The moment when a first draft notice for your child is sent home is always emotional and overwhelming, and it was so much more so when it's about your twins, with one expected to continue the typical path of most young Israelis, and the other isn’t due to a disability that exempts her from service," she added.
"In June 2023, I read an inspiring post on Facebook about the Special in Uniform program, which helps disabled youth volunteer for the military. While reading it, I wondered why Emanuel and her friends shouldn't also have the opportunity to serve in the military and contribute to the country according to their abilities?"
This week, in an emotional ceremony held at an IDF Home Front Command base, Emanuel was sworn into duty and became part of the Special in Uniform’s Strauss unit. Accompanying her at the ceremony was her twin sister, Maayan.
“I’ve attended dozens of Special in Uniform induction ceremonies, but there’s never been one like this,” says Lt. Col. (res.) Tiran Attia, Director of Special in Uniform. “Seeing the closeness and unity between Maayan and Emanuel, twins who grew up in the same house, but with such different conditions and challenges, both in uniform and serving together, was deeply emotional and inspiring.”
“As one who spent my life growing up with a twin sister with disabilities, I more than anyone can attest to the enormous challenges that Emanuel has faced and surmounted throughout her life. I won’t lie; the huge gaps that existed between the two of us weren’t always so easy for me either, and I’m so, so happy for her now that she finally feels like an equal,” Maayan said.
“Standing there before everyone, tears of joy filled my eyes,” Maayan continued emotionally. “I felt everyone’s love, everyone’s care. I saw how much they’ve done for Emanuel, how much confidence and strength they’ve given her and how much they all want her to succeed, just like I do. And I have no doubt that she will. Emanuel, you’ll go far!"