An Israeli organization proves that members of society who are written off as unemployable can still be productive. Yad Lekashish offers the elderly and disabled, many of them new immigrants, both a job and a social framework.
by Simon Griver
Lifeline For The Old Yad Lekashish is a unique organization which provides a place for the elderly and the disabled to work and socialize. Some 250 Jerusalemites come to the organizations workshops each morning to meet their friends and make a vital if modest amount of money creating high-quality products which are sold in Yad Lekashishs gift shop.
Located in a complex of nineteenth-century buildings opposite the walls of the Old City of Jerusalem, Yad Lekashish was founded in 1962 by Myriam Mendelow, who devoted her life to helping the elderly and needy. She believed that "to be is to do." By creating the Lifeline organization, she proved that given the opportunity, the elderly and disabled can lead creative and meaningful lives as an integral part of working society.
"We show here that the elderly are productive people," stresses Nava Einmor, director of Yad Lekashish. "We enable them to help themselves rather than simply giving them charity."
About half of those who come daily to Yad Lekashish are new immigrants. Dr. Masha Parbirov, a pediatrician, reached Israel with her husband Lev in 1991 from Gomel, Belarus in the former Soviet Union. She has one child in New York and another in Israel. "We are Jews and we wanted to be here. This is our home," she asserts. "But immigration is for the young. At our age it is very difficult to adjust to a new country even if it is your ancestral home. We have been coming to Yad Lekashish for several years. It gives some focus to our day and has helped us meet many new people."
Yad Lekashish runs workshops for metalwork, carpentry, ceramics, weaving, knitting, embroidery, toy-making, silk painting, box-making and bookbinding. Participants are given a brief training course to teach them the skill of their choice.
Sales in the gift shops provide people like Dr. Parbirov with about $150 per month. The sum may seem small, but with low national insurance pensions in Israel, it can be crucial.
Yad Lekashish covers an impressive 40% of its running costs from sales in the gift shop. The remaining 60% is derived from contributions collected both in Israel and abroad. It has few paid staff members; most functions are performed by volunteers.
The organization also provides daily transportation for participants, as well as hot meals and festival celebrations. For new immigrants from the former Soviet Union, this is sometimes their first opportunity to learn about the significance of Jewish festivals. Tours around the country and other social activities are also provided. In addition, regular medical and dental check-ups as well as treatment by a chiropodist are offered.
"Medical check-ups are very important for us," says Dr. Parbirov, who spends her mornings in the embroidery workshop. "Our home in Belarus was less than 80 kilometers from Chernobyl, where the nuclear power station melted down. But, fortunately, so far no member of my family has been affected."
Dr. Nina Lintubsky, a family doctor who reached Israel in 1990 from Moscow, works in the silk painting room creating a design about Shabbat. She speaks little Hebrew but is able to communicate to many non-Russian speakers in Yiddish. "The money I make here is very important," she explains, "but even more important are the friends I have made. I dont think I would have had a social life in Jerusalem without Yad Lekashish."
Yad Lekashish also successfully brings together the young and the old by running programs for Israeli and Diaspora youth who come to the center and spend time with the elderly.
"The most heartbreaking fact is that we have a waiting list," said Einmor. "Each day we have two or three requests to join us. But we do not have any free places."