Volunteering in Israel to help the kids
TWO weeks volunteering at an Israeli centre for children suffering from disabilities proved to be a very rewarding experience for Louise Fisher.
DANNY GOCS
TWO weeks volunteering at an Israeli centre for children suffering from disabilities proved to be a very rewarding experience for Louise Fisher.
Louise and her husband Steven travelled to Israel in June to attend a wedding and enjoy a holiday.
When their holiday was over, Steven returned to Melbourne but Louise stayed on to help out at the Beit Issie Shapiro centre for disabled children, working with staff in the classroom.
“The work was very draining, but it was an unbelievably rewarding experience,” said Fisher, who has worked with children in kindergartens in Melbourne.
Beit Issie Shapiro was established 26 years ago and has developed into one of Israel’s leading centres for children and young adults with disabilities including learning disabilities, mental retardation, cerebral palsy, autism, psychiatric and behavioural difficulties.
In 2008 Beit Issie Shapiro underwent an extensive renovation program to accommodate its growing needs and now boasts state-of-the-art facilities.
The non-profit centre is based in Ra’anana, near Tel Aviv, and services more than 5000 children and adults each year. It relies on the help of volunteers to help keep costs down.
Each year more than 500 volunteers, from as far afield as the United States, Canada, Britain and South Africa, as well as from the Israeli army, help out.
When Fisher was there she was the only Australian volunteer and hopes her experience will encourage more Australian tourists to spend time there.
“I had researched places to volunteer in Israel before leaving Australia, and before starting work at Beit Issie Shapiro, I went to have a look at the centre and was very impressed,” she said.
Fisher helped out in a small class of three-year-old children and met Rani, a twin who suffered a major brain haemorrhage three days after he was born, which left him with severe brain damage.
During this time Louise was staying in Tel Aviv and had to get up at 6.30am and take two buses to get to work.
“I spoke a few hundred words in Hebrew, so could communicate with the staff and some of the older kids,” she said.
“After working in the classroom for two weeks you realised that they were just like normal kids. I fell in love with them; the experience was unbelievably rewarding. And they are really appreciative of the work of volunteers.”
Enquiries: www.beitissie.org.il/Eng.
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