Altman/Burack exec joins Israeli Army for 2 weeks.

Rather than spending the weeks of Christmas and New Years complaining about the lack of deals to be done due to the holiday slowdown 24 year-old Randy Modell, of Altman/Burack Partners, decided to join Sar-El -- a program in which American Jews spend two weeks volunteering on an Israeli Army Base.

The program took place on an Army Depot in the Galilee, which is located in the north, that is responsible for the repair and maintenance of all of the Israeli Army vehicles, tanks, jeeps, trucks, etc. Dressed in green camouflaged army clothing Modell attended flag-raising every morning at 7 a.m. before starting the Israeli workday.

The Israeli workday consists of working from 7 a.m. until 4 p.m. with two half-hour breaks for breakfast and lunch. He spent the two weeks working in the base's tire warehouse. Orders would come in throughout the day requesting various sized tires; Modell would pull the tires from the shelves, package them on pallets, and then place them on trucks to be shipped -- of course none of this would be possible with out the help of a forklift. The evenings were spent listening to guest speakers with topics that ranged from Israel's elections to the Israeli/Palestinian conflict.

"These lectures helped give the volunteers a deeper understanding of the root of the conflict and how the government functions," said Modell.

Now that the holiday slowdown is over, Modell is glad to be back in New York, doing what he loves best -- deals! However, he could not think of a more meaningful way to have spent his holiday vacation. In addition to doing sales and leasing for Altman/Burack Partners, Modell is also currently enrolled at Columbia University's Masters in Science in Real Estate Development Program.