Emunah Bet Elazraki, in Netanya, Israel, provides a home for children at risk, sees to their education and provides therapeutic and academic aid. But what most impressed Ira Riklis during a visit there some years ago, was that the home is truly a Home and upon their arrival, children living there become part of a family. Bonds established between the directors, the highly trained, professional staff and the children endure long after the children have grown and gone out on their own.
The fact that these children grow up, let alone that they grow up as healthy, productive individuals, is amazing enough. The more than 200 children at the home, ages 0-18, came from dysfunctional families ravaged by violence, drug and alcohol abuse, mental illness or abandonment. For them, the home provides the hope, care and guidance they need to rise above their circumstances. Perhaps most important, as Ira Riklis saw first hand, was the love and sense of connection they receive, both while there and for the rest of their lives.