Kibbutz Lehavot, in the north of Israel, is more than 5,000 miles from Boston. But despite the distance, a bond has been formed between the two locales that share a passion for education.
The tight-knit kibbutz is one of the communities across northern Israel that is benefiting from a new $1 million grant from CJP’s Israel Emergency Fund awarded to Habaita (Homeward).
Habaita, a new nonprofit educational initiative, used the money to bring teachers and counselors into the region to support excellence in education for local residents. Their goal is to recruit some 200 new educators, a few dozen of whom already relocated to northern Israel and the Upper Galilee in response to a call to take care of the many children in the region, according to Sigal Moran, Habaita’s CEO.
In the aftermath of Oct. 7, some 62,000 residents were evacuated or left the area from the heavily populated region that sits against the borders of Lebanon and Syria. The area has been under a daily barrage of missile and rocket attacks from Hezbollah, the Iran-backed terrorist organization based in Lebanon.
The exodus of so many residents is one factor that has left the region with a dramatic shortage of educators, explained Moran, Israel’s former Welfare Ministry director general.
“Without CJP’s backing—money that is being matched by the Israeli government—it would be difficult to do what we’re doing,” Moran said.
Most importantly, “CJP was the first Jewish federation to believe in us,” she said. Other North American federations have since joined as partners, she added.
“These devoted educators are true symbols of the Zionist ideals who have uprooted their lives to help others and serve their country,” Moran said.
Habaita’s decision to focus on education was based on the results of a survey of about 300 evacuated families that revealed that education is the critical factor for families weighing the heavy decision to return to their homes, Moran said.
“First, we have to rebuild the education system,” she said.
But residents told them that it’s not enough to return to the status quo, before the war.
“They want better schools to meet their specific needs and aspirations,” Moran said.
Ayelet Pachima, a 21-year-old Israeli, is one of the new educators at Kibbutz Lehavot’s after-school program, working with young kids and teens.
Pachima is a national service volunteer who relocated to the kibbutz from a small village in southern Israel, where she grew up.
The threatening bombs and continual warning sirens are jolting for the children, Pachima wrote in an email. “Many of the children are in a form of shock or trauma,” she said.
At the after-school program, she gets satisfaction knowing the children are relaxing while enjoying games and baking cookies. Teens now have a comfortable, safe space to unwind and hang out with friends, she explained.
Pachima looks forward to a brighter future, “when the children will be able to forget this very sad time and enjoy a normal childhood,” she wrote.
It’s a hope shared by Giora Salz, chairman of the Upper Galilee Regional Council, which oversees a range of municipal services for the nearly 23,000 residents who live on the 29 kibbutzim that dot the Upper Galilee. The council also supports the minority Druze community in the Upper Galilee.
In August, the council received a $1 million grant from CJP aimed at bolstering the much-needed security for eight schools for young children in the Upper Galilee, with bomb shelters, safe rooms and protective areas.
The need for shelters is enormous, Salz said. “Parents need to know that their kids will be safe before they have the confidence to send them back to school,” with many children now leaving the kibbutz and traveling by bus, leaving them vulnerable, he said.
He was pleased to report that even in the first week of school, most of the children returned. He expects more will begin as the year unfolds.
“Without the protected space, I would not send our children to school, despite their need for a routine to maintain resilience,” one parent said in an email. “The efforts to provide us with protection and staff in the schools guarantee me peace of mind.”
In awarding an emergency grant to 17 Druze villages in northern Israel, CJP recognized the great need among the Druze, a minority community that feels a deep connection with Israel and actively serves in the Israel Defense Forces, including during the current war. The community is notably underserved by the Israeli government, CJP said about its decision. Many are low-income, single-family households.
Another two CJP grants totaling $300,000—managed by the Israel Association of Community Centers, Israel’s leading social service organization—supported resiliency and mental health for the Druze community at different stages of the war.
Ofakim LeAtid, a social service organization led by Druze leaders, received $150,000 in crisis funds from CJP for 15 neighborhoods devastated by the deadly rocket attack in August that killed 12 children from Majdal Shams while they were playing soccer.
Reflecting on the significance of CJP’s grants, Moran and Salz both said they are grateful for the infusion of much-needed funds—specifically for the north and Upper Galilee.
Improving schools and providing new security are critical to attracting families back to their homes, a key to ensuring the region’s future, both leaders said. They each expressed a deeper meaning beyond the dollars.
“It’s an immeasurable recognition of the hardships residents live with since the war and a reassurance that they are not alone,” Salz said. “We feel you are with us.”
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