Chanukah, the Festival of Lights, is a much-needed bright light in the darkness that Israel is experiencing this winter. The massacre on October 7th has shocked all of Israel, and therefore, this Chanukah, Shiloh Israel Children’s Fund (SICF) has launched its inspiring campaign, “Bring Back The Light.”
Terror is a heart-wrenching reality faced by many thousands of Israeli children, who have endured the unthinkable – kidnappings, violent attacks, beheadings, rapes, and the loss of loved ones. These traumatic experiences often leave deep psychological scars, manifesting as anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Understanding the gravity of these challenges, Shiloh Israel Children’s Fund has been dedicated to providing healing and support for over two decades. Their approach is multifaceted, encompassing individual and group therapies, both traditional and alternative, administered by a team of skilled social workers, psychologists, and specialty therapists.
“Children aren’t like adults. Adults who have been through a major trauma, can go to a therapist and sit down and talk it out. They can vent, get some guidance, work through the trauma and learn to contend with the trauma and move on with life. Children are different,” says David Rubin, founder of Shiloh Israel Children’s Fund.
Rubin, who survived a terror attack with his son in the Samaria region, quickly learned something that he has been sharing ever since, that “One thing that Shiloh Israel Children’s Fund has discovered is that children usually bury their trauma. And when they bury it, it comes out in all the wrong ways.”
While SICF is unique in its commitment to transforming the lives of Israeli children who have been scarred by terror, this Chanukah their work is needed more than ever before.
Israel’s war against Hamas, which it has been fighting since October 7th, has rippling effects. In addition to the 1,200 Israelis who were brutally murdered on that Sabbath day that will never be forgotten, 500,000 Israelis have been relocated from the north and south of Israel, many of them ending up in Samaria, in the center of the country, the focus of SICF’s work. In addition to the thousands of children to whom SICF has provided therapy, there now are tens of thousands more Israeli children, and their families, who desperately need help.
To ensure that all who need help receive it, SICF has expanded its therapeutic offerings to “mobile” therapy. It is now sending therapists out to where the displaced families are located, either to provide group therapy or family therapy, often to families that will never be whole again.
Especially during wartime, children and trauma often get neglected and are left in the dark. But we can not afford to ignore Israel’s future. We need to help Israeli children heal and bring the light back into their lives.
Many families in Israel cannot afford the critical therapies their children desperately need and SICF treatment is more necessary than ever before. This is where the “Bring Back The Light” campaign comes in, aiming to raise funds to support and expand these vital programs.
The miracle of Chanukah is illustrated best by the small but bright light that shone in the darkness, when one small flask of oil that should only have lasted for one night burned for eight straight nights. With your help, SICF can bring back that miracle of light into the darkness of these children’s lives. Just as the Maccabees overcame great odds in their defeat of the larger and stronger Greek army, SICF helps children surrounded by many enemy nations and terrorist organizations to overcome the worst odds. SICF brings light to the lives of children whose lives are too often overshadowed by trauma.
This is your chance to be a part of the healing and strengthening of the next generation of Israelis.
Donate now to SICF to Bring Back the Light into the lives of our precious children!
