JERUSALEM, Israel – CBN is helping empower disabled individuals in Israel by partnering with the non-profit organization, Shalva National Center.
Together, CBN and Shalva are providing disabled Israelis with a lifestyle balancing independent living with guided supervision in a newly furnished apartment.
“In the flat, I live with my friends,” says Tahala. “This feels better with my friends. I love my friends so much. I feel happy.”
Gila also enjoys the freedom of apartment living.
“I feel in my heart that it’s fun to live in the apartment. My heart is connected to the apartment,” she says.
The residents greeted board members and supporters of Shalva during a recent open house. It was a celebration of their new lifestyle made possible through the partnership of the Shalva National Center and CBN.
“The relationship we’ve had with CBN over the years has been extraordinary,” says Shalva Founder Rabbi Kalman Samuels.
“What I think is important is that CBN has now decided to support Shalva financially. They have given you wonderful people in the States and all over the world have donated and CBN is using it effectively. And in this case, we have furnished a new apartment for our young adults which is qualitatively different than most other apartments,” says Samuels.
Samuels says the relationship is based on biblical values.
“It’s very important in terms of the shared values we share with CBN viewers,” he says.
The Shalva National Center is one of the largest and most advanced centers of its kind. It’s dedicated to providing quality care to disabled individuals and their families.
“Jerusalem is the center of so much social innovation. But perhaps the thing that I’m most proud of is that Jerusalem is where Shalva set up its home. Because Shalva is a light not just to the country, but a light to the world of knowledge, of caring, of seeing people for who they are and not their disability first,” says Fleur Hassan-Nahoum, Jerusalem’s deputy mayor.
CBN’s Development Manager Danny Kopp represented CBN partners at the open house.
“We get to partner with amazing organizations. But Shalva just stands out in how it embodies these values of not just care for people, but for seeing the vision of them flourishing,” he says. “Because we were all created equally in the eyes of God. We all have the right, we deserve to be able to flourish, no matter what conditions we live in, and you embody that. And you facilitate that, and you make it possible. What you see here is beautiful”
During the day, residents work at Shalva and then come home to their CBN-sponsored apartment. They share responsibilities such as caring for the home along with the staff members overseeing them. It gives them and their families a new future.
“This is the reason we do it. And now we have beautiful people who are productive members of society and bless us all with their passion and their grace and their smiles,” says Shalva Chair Donna Arnell. “Thank you again to the Christian Broadcasting Network for your generous donation and support of this important organization that is affecting all of these children, all of their families and all of the world. So, thank you.”
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