The Story Behind the Mission

Healing in Nature (HiN): From One Soldier’s Experience to a Lifeline for Hundreds

 

In 2014, during Operation Protective Edge, Omri Barkin served as a combat soldier in the IDF’s elite Maglan Unit. Like many soldiers returning from intense combat, he came home carrying experiences that were difficult to process. Nothing visibly dramatic. Just the quiet weight many veterans carry after war.
 

His father noticed something had changed.

The Wallis family, a jewish zionist family from  St. Louis, invited Omri to spend time at their ranch in Montana. Surrounded by mountains, horses, and vast open space, far removed from the noise of war, something began to shift.
 

There was no Wi-Fi. No news alerts. Just nature, conversation, and a community that cared.

For the first time since his service, Omri felt space to breathe, reflect, and reconnect. Before leaving Montana, he made a promise to himself: one day, he would create a way for other veterans to experience the same opportunity to heal.

Nearly a decade later, after the trauma Israel experienced on October 7, 2023, that promise could no longer wait.
 

Omri founded Healing in Nature (HiN), a nonprofit dedicated to supporting the mental health of underserved IDF reservists. Many carry the psychological weight of prolonged combat but do not meet the formal criteria for PTSD, leaving them outside traditional support systems.

Today, more than 600 Israeli reservists are waiting to participate in HiN programs.

From the beginning, the American Jewish community has been central to the organization’s story. The Wallis family, who first welcomed Omri years earlier, became early champions of the program, opening their Montana ranch to HiN’s first veteran groups and helping transform a personal act of kindness into a scalable model for healing.
 

Healing in Nature is not simply a retreat. Veterans participate alongside the comrades who served beside them, creating a rare space to process shared experiences together. The program combines immersive time in nature with professional therapy, peer support, and guided reflection designed specifically for combat teams.
 

HiN is also deeply research-driven, partnering with scholars from Harvard University, University of Cambridge, and Tel Aviv University to measure outcomes and contribute to global research on trauma recovery and resilience.

The week in nature is only the beginning. After returning to Israel, participants join the HiN alumni community, which provides ongoing peer support, mentorship, and access to mental health resources.

Because the real challenge often begins when the retreat ends.

Healing in Nature exists to ensure that the soldiers who protected their country receive the support, community, and tools they need to rebuild their lives.
 

To learn more or support Healing in Nature, please contact:
Omri Barkin, Co-Founder & CEO
omri@hin-group.org | +972 54 203 0339