Naomi

Some of us remember Ricky Nelson’s popular tune, Garden Party, recorded back in 1972. A different garden party took place last evening at the Jerusalem Botanical Gardens.  We wish we could have been there.

This “garden party” was hosted by our grantee, Kaima, the unique organic sustainable farm that works with young people who have not succeeded in traditional learning environments. Kaima’s latest creation is a hydroponic greenhouse built on the Botanical Garden’s grounds. As Yoni Yefet-Reich, Kaima’s co-founder, explained when we visited the site in February, the “farm” has several significant benefits. It will provide healthy organic produce to residents of the Holy City; offer exciting learning opportunities for the young people in Kaima’s program, and of equal importance, it represents an outstanding example of eco-friendly farming which is crucial in a country like Israel where water is a precious commodity.

Judging by this photo Yoni sent us, it appears that there will be plenty of karpas for the upcoming Seder.

She’s 13 years old and as you can see, she’s a pretty cute kid.

Juliana’s family is from the Philippines but she lives in Jerusalem with her mother who is a foreign worker. They live in a three room apartment shared with two other families. Juliana last saw her father when she was five years old, but two years ago he died in the Philippines.

Today, Juliana’s future doesn’t seem very hopeful. Her family is poor and they have very few rights in their adopted homeland. But, there is one thing that puts a big smile on Juliana’s face and that is her Big Sister who was introduced to her by Big Brothers, Big Sisters in Jerusalem. “Bigs” are dedicated volunteers who have taken a strong interest in helping a child like Juliana and together they explore the world and create meaningful connections.

One of the experiences Juliana was able to share with her “Big” was a rock climbing event where the professional staff noticed Juliana’s extraordinary skill in climbing and extreme sports. They suggested she could excel with some training and guidance.

One problem—the year of training costs almost 3,000 shekels (a little more than $750)—a sum which Juliana’s mom could never afford. When the social worker asked if we could help, we of course said we would try. Can you help us help Juliana to learn to rock climb? Who knows what other mountains she will be able to conquer after a year of training?

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.

I have read cultural anthropologist Margaret Mead’s quote countless times and yet it was not until this morning that I came to understand the truth in her words.

Last July (diary July 20, 2015) we shared the story of Awaad who left his homeland of Eritrea at the age of 17 to avoid the draft (which is essentially a lifetime of slavery in that country) and successfully crossed the border to Sudan. There he lived in a refugee camp for two years and dreamed of crossing the Mediterranean to Europe and perhaps to North America. While in the camp he (like many others) was kidnapped by Bedouins and taken to Sinai where he was held hostage and tortured before a ransom of $13,000 was eventually paid by family and friends. After six months, he was released at the Israeli border, picked up by the IDF and transferred to an Israeli prison in the Negev. After three months in prison he was released onto the streets of South Tel Aviv where he discovered a friend from home who took him in and helped him settle in Israel.

Up until this point Awaad’s story is much like the story of thousands of other African refugees who have left their homeland in search of safety and security. But—last summer everything changed when Awaad was brutally attacked on the street by a deranged man who swung a machete at him hoping to end his life. Awaad threw his arm up to protect his head and in so doing his hand was severed. The attacker fled as Awaad fell to the ground.  We will never know how Awaad had the presence of mind to apply pressure to stop the flow of blood from his arm, but that action no doubt saved his life.

Doctors at Tel Hashomer Hospital worked for 11 hours to successfully reattach his hand. It was at this point that our friend and grantee Gideon Ben Ami who runs a food program in Tel Aviv heard Awaad’s story on a news program and decided to visit him in the hospital. From that first visit Awaad’s life changed. Upon his release from the hospital Awaad returned to Gideon’s home where he recovered from his trauma in a safe and caring environment. Physical therapists donated their expertise to ensure greater use of his hand and eventually he moved back in with his roommates and even found some part-time work. Gideon’s support was augmented by a group of compassionate neighbors from the city of Zichron Yaakov who provided Awaad with both financial and emotional support.

It was clear throughout this journey that for Awaad to have a future he would have to leave Israel. A few weeks ago, Gideon approached his friends at the Swiss Embassy and asked about the possibility of a humanitarian visa.  A good family in Zurich agreed to be Awaad’s sponsor and to everyone’s amazement the Swiss government issued the visa this morning.  Awaad will soon leave for Zurich and a new life.

Awaad’s story portrays both the worst of humanity and the best. The evil that confronted him began in Eritrea, continued with the kidnapping in Sudan, torture in the Sinai, imprisonment in Israel and finally the attack in Bnei Brak. Despite all of that, goodness has prevailed. Doctors gave their time and expertise to save his hand, Gideon befriended him in hospital, our donors offered funds to help support his needs, a physical therapist offered critical care, the good people of Zichron offered friendship and material support, a generous family offered to sponsor him and, finally, the Swiss ambassador acknowledged Awaad’s tragedy and arranged for his visa to Switzerland.

Awaad’s story began with his dream to leave his war torn homeland and make his way across the Mediterranean to Europe and then, perhaps, America. We are proud of the part we played in getting him to where he will be very shortly. With the help of many good people in this world good can prevail over evil—we see it every day.

I want to thank you for your support, and would like you to know that  this award  is for you and your donors that help me  and give me the opportunity to make those important changes for my sisters.

With all of yesterday’s news about International Women’s Day now past we were excited to receive this picture and an email this morning from Fainy Sukenik, the founder of Ba’asher Telchi, our Israel grantee that provides social, legal and financial advice to women from the Hareidi community who are facing divorce but do not want to leave their community. When we met Fainy in Israel a few weeks ago we learned that the demand for her organization’s services was increasing exponentially and last year alone more than 400 women benefited from their help.

We are not surprised that Fainy was selected by the Committee on the Status of Women as one of the 20 women (from  the entire Israeli population) who contribute to  the change in women’s status. She is a star. Pictured with Fainy at the Knesset ceremony is Isaac Herzog, chair of the Labour Party.

Nothing quite prepared us for our emotional journey to Israel’s southern periphery yesterday where we met with the families and children who have benefited from the extraordinary talents of Shay Agmon, a masterful animal-assisted therapist who also uses his musical talents to help kids with PTSD and other learning problems exacerbated by the 2014 war on Israel’s southern border as well as the ongoing rocket attacks which periodically shatter the calm.  Nemo and Alec, pictured above, are but two members of the bird and rabbit menagerie Shay employs in his work at the local school (but nine miles from the Gaza border).  The Good People Fund underwrote two series of sessions and during this visit we were able to meet not only the kids but also their parents and school officials. After what was a very emotional ceremony during which we were thanked numerous times, we had a chance to speak privately with several parents. Each told us how grateful they were and about the changes in their children’s behavior. The principal, admitting that he was initially skeptical of the program’s value, asked that we consider helping to fund additional sessions with a new group.

As we got on the road to return to Tel Aviv we could not help but agree that the smiles we saw on the kids’ faces and the appreciation we heard from both parents and school officials made this a very special  tzedakah investment.

As we end a very full four days of intense meetings with our grantees here in Israel the following email just received from one of those grantees was a very welcome recognition of the work our donors make possible.

Naomi, hi.

While preparing for Shabbat it struck me that you invest a lot of time and effort in trying to make Israel a better place. I feel comfortable telling you this, because I personally have nothing to gain by mentioning that which gets ignored. No one requires you to come over here year after year with another board member at your expense and to sit hour upon hour weighing how Israelis can improve our society. No one requires you to translate your concern for Israel into concrete action. You do it time and time again, and I believe that your endeavor must sometimes look routine. It certainly is not. 

Were all Israelis as concerned about our country as you are, we would be living in a different society here.

In this world of instantaneous media coverage good things are often ignored. I, for one, don’t believe that such a lack of recognition is worthy or even decent. I hope that this Shabbat you will know that you and the people you work with are appreciated here.

Shabbat shalom,

Gary

And Shabbat Shalom from Tel Aviv where a very premature summer has appeared in all of its glory!

Naomi