The Jerusalem Post - The Jerusalem Post Magazine
WIPING OUT HOUSING POVERTY THROUGHOUT ISRAEL
Tenufa Bakehila - Building Hope creates new futures, one home and family at a time.
Leah's apartment was black with mold. It was dark and cramped; one room was completely inaccessible. There was no privacy. Three children slept in one room, two in the living area; a 12-year-old girl shared with her younger brothers. Even the bathroom and shower doors were broken; they couldn’t fully close. The children were anxious. They wouldn’t bring friends home; their schoolwork deteriorated. They were living in shame at a crucial developmental stage – when they should be building confidence, making friends, laying a foundation for the future.
Leah’s story is one of courage, but also deep despair. At 72-yearsold, Leah assumed the role of single mother for five grandchildren. Her daughter suffered from mental illness, and could no longer care for them. But Leah watched as her grandchildren’s own mental health deteriorated. And her home was so badly dilapidated that she feared the children would be placed in foster care.
"Thousands of Israeli families in need – children, elderly, Holocaust survivors, people with disabilities and others – live in homes like Leah's," says Gabi Nachmani, founder and director of Tenufa Bakehila - Building Hope. "They have barely enough to pay for food, electricity, gas… Home maintenance, even critical repairs, are beyond them." Gabi sees families like Leah's every day. His organization, Tenufa Bakehila - Building Hope, is leading the response to housing poverty in Israel. It is the only nonprofit in Israel that works on a large-scale to provide in-depth home repairs together with social work support for hundreds of families a year.
When Tenufa Bakehila - Building Hope was alerted to Leah's situation, they dispatched a repair team and transformed the dilapidated apartment into a warm and nourishing home for the children. They renovated the home and even rehabilitated a section of the apartment that had been completely uninhabitable and closed off. With a newly bright and decent home the children now felt secure. The air was clean of mold and they no longer lay awake coughing at night. The 12-year-old granddaughter moved into her own room and started inviting friends home. The children had a bright, encouraging space to do homework. The repairs gave Leah and her grandchildren a new foundation on which to build a healthy future.
Tenufa Bakehila - Building Hope impacts far more than the physical home. They help families begin a new chapter in their lives, like the nine-year-old boy who had no running water in his shower for four years! His face lit up when he saw the new bathroom installed free of charge by the organization’s repair team. That night he experienced - for the first time in his memory - the comfort of going to bed after a warm shower. He went to school with his head held high the next day, refreshed and with confidence that he could succeed that day and in the days ahead.
“We help elderly who have no hot water” says Nachmani. “Some have toilets that don't flush. Recently, we helped an elderly woman whose blind son would carry her into the bathroom or shower because her home was not wheelchair accessible. When our team widened the doorways and installed an accessible shower they not only improved her safety - they restored her dignity and independence. We helped a Holocaust survivor who had no lights in her home. She wore a diaper at night, afraid she might fall in the dark bathroom. With our help she no longer lived in shame. And no longer in the dark, she was less depressed; she connected with friends and neighbors.
As a child, Nachmani grew up in a poor Jerusalem neighborhood. He and his brothers learned to fix things in their home and volunteered to help their neighbors. As an adult, he made it his life's mission to bring relief to families living in dilapidated homes. This year will mark 30 years since Nachmani began his first, grassroots, volunteer repair project. That small project has grown into Tenufa Bakehila, the largest home-repair nonprofit in Israel.
Today, the organization is active nationwide and partners with 20 municipal welfare departments. Its goal is to bring an end to severe housing poverty in Israel – one city, home, and family at a time. The organization employs fulltime repair teams that carry out in-depth renovations throughout Israel for hundreds of families each year. Tenufa Bakehila - Building Hope
has repaired over 6,500 homes to date, bringing security and hope to more than 20,000 Israelis in need. Its goal in 2022 is to repair 600 homes, and in 2023 to repair 700 homes nationwide!
Tenufa Bakehila - Building Hope helps hundreds of families each year, but thousands still need help. This Rosh Hashanah, as Jewish communities throughout Israel and the world celebrate renewal, these families deserve their own chance at renewal. Their homes are dysfunctional. Some live without showers, without proper kitchens. They have faulty electricity and live in darkened homes. With your help, Tenufa Bakehila - Building Hope can help them build a better future.