chesed

YNA Chesed Program

Unique to YNA is its Thursday schedule where our students have an extended afternoon break from 1:30-8:30pm. During that time they can hang out with friends, relax, read or choose to spend their free time helping others. YNA's Chesed Program™ offers a wide range of opportunities through different volunteer programs for students on Thursday afternoons.

Herzog Hospital's psychiatric division cares for patients of all ages who are suffering from psychiatric disorders, striving to enable them to attain the highest possible level of functioning. Herzog has achieved remarkable success in rehabilitating patients and returning them to the community through innovative out-patient programs. YNA students volunteer at the psychiatric ward in Herzog Hospital between 4 and 6 PM, adding a little entertainment to lives of patients suffering from schizophrenia and other mental illnesses.

Grandpa Jack Therapy Farm – Located near the Malcha Mall, behind the biblical zoo, in the Ein Yeal Nature Reserve, GJTF is intended to aid kids with attention-deficit disorder/attention-deficit hyperactive disorder (ADD/ADHD), behavioral or emotional problems, autism, PDD, cerebral palsy, Down Syndrome, blindness, deafness, retardation, mental illnesses, anxieties and social difficulties. Therapeutic horseback riding is based on the relationship between man and horse and on physical activity connected to riding. Being in the presence of horses, learning riding skills, control over the horse and horse grooming has been proven to encourage personal and social development. Use of non-verbal processes facilitates emotional openness, expressing and processing emotions, cognitive and physical self awareness, self confidence and self image, social skills, sense of independence and experience of success. Nature’s’ setting contributes much to creating a relaxing atmosphere that enables participants to open up and encourages change processes. This therapy is based on relating to body and soul as one unit whose components influence one another. YNA students volunteer at GJTF weekly between 1:30 and 5PM.

Keren Or - Nestled in the hills of Ramot, lies Keren Or (Hebrew for ray of light), the only center of its kind in the world under Jewish auspices. Keren Or is devoted exclusively to the care and rehabilitation of blind and weak-visioned children who are also physically or mentally handicapped. YNA students volunteer between 2 and 4 PM. Students who volunteer have the zechut (merit) to work one-on-one with blind and deaf children and those with other physical and mental handicaps.

Meshi Early Child Development Center was founded in 1998 by mother and daughter team Hadassah Zuravin and Lifsha Feldman when they refused to accept the neurologist's dire prognosis for Lifsha's daughter, Ruchama. Meshi's program welcomes children ranging from 6 months to 5 years of age and focuses on early intervention, comprehensive rehabilitation and intensive therapy. Individualized therapeutic programs, designed to meet the specific needs of each child, form the foundation of Meshi's educational and therapeutic approach. YNA students committed to bringing Torah to the homes of Meshi students learn with them, and help out with homework and sometimes just provide the gift of friendship!

Shalva – Hebrew for “Tranquility” is the brainchild of Malki and Kalman Samuels. Believing that the care of special needs children should not be left to a family alone, they founded Shalva in 1990 endeavoring to create a therapeutic environment in which special needs children could thrive and grow. Shalva provides services to more than 500 participants including infants, children, adolescents and young adults via a plethora of tailored programs and round-the-clock therapies. YNA students go to Shalva to spend time with children there. Some suffer from Down Syndrome and others suffer from other mental illness. YNA students help by assisting them with hydrotherapeutic lessons in their pool, as well as music classes and more.

Tishma School & Center for Autism was established as a school-based intensive behavioral intervention program for children with autism in Israel, based upon the principles of Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA). Designed to substantially improve communication, learning, and life skills Tishma provides autistic students with a more dignified and self-sufficient life vision. Tishma’s aim is to help autistic children, whenever possible become functional and contributing members of society at large. Since its founding in 2001 in a room in Jerusalem with two children, Tishma has expanded rapidly and now serves over 40 students, ages 3-17, in a fully rented Jerusalem property. YNA students volunteer with Tishma weekly.

Ohr Meir U’Bracha was founded in 2002 by Liora Tedgi, a mom of 10 who was injured in a car bomb attack in Jerusalem to respond to the needs of victims of terror and their families whose injuries do not ‘qualify’ to be recognized as medical disabilities, or because they are still in the process of being assessed for disability. Ohr Meir U’Bracha does not use lengthy evaluation processes and does not have eligibility criteria other than verifying that the individual is a primary or secondary victim of terror. Immediate assistance is provided whenever possible- no questions asked. YNA students volunteer weekly, helping package food parcels for these families.

One Family Fund – OFF believes that terrorism doesn't discriminate and that terrorist activity must never be tolerated and we must never become desensitized to the evil carnage it causes. Each victim of terror has left family and loved ones behind. Children have been orphaned; widows left without sufficient livelihood and siblings have been torn apart at every stage of growth and development. Families must endure the difficult process of trying to slowly rebuild their shattered lives both physically and mentally, however altered they have become. Weekly, YNA students visit the homes of these terror victims.

More info coming soon...

DID YOU KNOW THAT YESHIVAT NETIV ARYEH HAS ONE PUSHKE IN ITS BEIT MIDRASH? IT BELONGS TO - Zichron Menachem (ZM) named in memory of Menachem Ehrental, an Israeli boy who battled cancer for over 14 years - from age 18 months until his young death. Drawing on their vast experience as parents of a cancer-stricken child, Menachem's parents, together with family and friends, founded ZM as a non-profit organization aimed at easing the suffering of young cancer patients and their families.

GOT ANOTHER IDEA?

YNA strongly encourages students to provide their own ideas of how to ‘give back’ Anybody who knows of an organization looking for volunteers, YNA’s committed yeshiva students are always looking for other venues where they can lend a helping hand!!

For questions regarding YNA’s Chessed Program, please contact:
Yitzy Hammer: 0524-233-012 or Michael Brodsky: 0546-907-500