kesher
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Mission Statement
'Kesher' is a professional social change organization with a wide national presence, working for and with Special Families around Israel. 'Kesher' is singular in that its services focus upon the caregivers in charge of the disabled person: parents, siblings and extended family. Our work is conceived and exacted as a form of empowerment and support, specifically designed to address the hardships of family members who have devoted themselves to the care of a loved one with special needs.
About This Cause
KESHER ASSOCIATION - The Home for Special Families in Israel When a special child is born, a special family is born. In Israel there are about 330,000 families with children with disabilities, or as we call them: Special Families. Raising a child with special needs is a difficult journey. Special families go through severe personal, social, and emotional upheavals which end up affecting every aspect of their lives. Beyond the endless bureaucracy and the lack of services, the difficulties are enormous within the family unit: • 75% of special parents' employment situation is heavily affected and a significant part of them are forced to retire from work to care for their special child. • 95% of special parents have financial difficulties due to added medical expenses. • 90% feel lonely and anxious due to the isolation that comes with having to care for a special child. • 85% deal with difficulties with siblings who may feel neglected because much of the parents’ emotional energy is directed towards the child with special needs. Kesher works to promote the quality of life and rights of families of children and adults with special needs, believing that empowered and involved parents and families are the source of strength and hope for their children. We provide aid for families with children and adults with all types of disabilities, from all population groups in Israel: Jews, Arabs, religious, orthodox, and secular, in all regions of the country. Some of the programs, services, and activities of Kesher a) Individual Assistance: Aid & Exhaustion of Rights Center. The center provides response and support for the needs of special families. Expert volunteers help in finding solutions to complex problems in childcare and assist them In exercising their rights. The center is managed by a lawyer with vast experience in the field and staffed by a team of lawyers and 25 volunteers with a professional background in education, welfare, and social security. Parental Guidance. Providing personal support for parents dealing with the consequences of raising a special child, with an emphasis on the family and marital relation. Case Management. Providing continuous personal support for managing the many interfaces in the care of the child, the bureaucratic struggles, the medical treatments, the endless forms, connection to experts and more experienced parents as needed. Emotional Accompaniment. Strengthens personal resilience and provides a safe space for parents, who often get lost in the constant challenges of caring for a special child. Sibling Development. An individual training program for siblings of special who face a complex reality in which they become transparent in the family unit due to the focus on caring for a sibling with special needs. The program provides siblings with a variety of tools for personal development. b) Group Assistance: Kesher operates support groups for special families in a wide variety of localities (groups for parents, siblings, grandparents, etc.), as well as lectures on a variety of contents including the exhaustion of rights, empowerment workshops, seminar days and conferences for families and professionals. c) Social Change at the Grassroots Level: the association has developed an innovative community model, within which more than 52 leadership groups of special parents are currently promoting social change in different cities and villages throughout the country. The leadership groups work in close cooperation with the local authorities to establish services and obtain resources for children with special needs and their families, and to create inclusive public spaces. d) Advocacy & Raising Awareness: KESHER works tirelessly to promote legislation and policy changes which improve the lives of special families. The association is involved in Knesset committees on a variety of issues, including special education law, transportation for children with special needs to kindergartens and schools, reimbursements for pre-medical treatments, assistance of foreign workers to care for a special child in the family, and more. KESHER achievements include: • Receiving the status of a special advisor to the United Nations on special families. • Winning a token of appreciation from the Deputy Minister of Health for activities in the field of exercising rights for special families. • Implementing a joint venture with the Disability Manager Division at the Ministry of Social Affairs: "Special Parents-Professional Dialogue Workshops"