“This place is the only family I have left”
I arrived in Israel from Poland in 1965. I survived the Holocaust, but the Nazis murdered my entire family- my parents and five siblings. Here in Israel I met my future husband, who was also a Holocaust survivor, and we married in 1966.
I have been part of Yad LaKashish (Lifeline for the Old) since 1978. I have always loved knitting, and Ms. Myriam Mendilow, Founder of Yad LaKashish, brought me to the organization to be in charge of the knitting workshop.
In 2001, my husband passed away. We had no children and I have no other family here, so I was left all by myself. Luckily, I have this place, which is like a family to me. At Yad LaKashish we have 280 elderly people, whom, thanks to this wonderful facility, have an active routine for their week. We come here 5 days a week, from 08:00 to 12:00, and work in nine different workshops. At 10:00 am, we have our coffee break, and then go back to work until 12:00, when we have lunch here together. The different products that we create are sold in the gift shop, that together with donations, fund Yad LaKashish.
This place creates a meaning for my day-to-day life. It prevents me from feeling that I am all alone in the world. I have friends here and I am part of a community that has meaning. Yad LaKashish, alongside Ner-Ya’akov, another great Jerusalem-based NGO that takes care of Holocaust survivors, are the only family I have left.”
