(Tuesday, November 4, 2025) – Prof. Osnat Levtzion-Korach, CEO of Shamir Medical Center (Assaf Harofeh), has returned from a deeply emotional and transformative journey to Uganda, where she served as the accompanying physician for a unique therapeutic mission supporting mothers who lost their sons in the Iron Swords War. The journey was organized by Journey 4Hope, an Israeli nonprofit dedicated to emotional resilience programs for bereaved families, using nature, community, and guided reflection as tools for post-trauma recovery.
This Uganda journey was the fourth in a series of field-based expeditions created specifically for bereaved mothers. Twenty women, each of whom lost a son in battle, took part in the experience, which blended wildlife safari, group healing circles, shared remembrance rituals, and quiet time in nature, far from the pressures and emotional intensity that have defined their lives since October 2023. The goal of the program is not to erase grief, but to offer a space where pain, memory, and renewal can exist side by side, surrounded by supportive peers who understand the same loss.
As one of Israel’s leading medical executives and a national voice on trauma and rehabilitation, Prof. Levtzion-Korach’s presence on the journey symbolized the growing partnership between Israel’s medical institutions and civil society organizations responding to the emotional toll of the war.
“I am deeply thankful for the opportunity to take part in this Journey 4Hope delegation, which is doing extraordinary work with twenty bereaved mothers whose heroic sons fell in battle and were with us in spirit throughout the journey,” said Prof. Levtzion-Korach. “I did not know what I would encounter when I joined, but I returned with a profound belief in the healing power of such an experience. These mothers, carrying the legacy of their heroic sons, are a tremendous force.”
“Out of the pain and sorrow emerged moments of friendship, laughter, and hope. The natural surroundings gave us space to breathe, to mend hearts, and to discover the healing strength of this community of women. I return with deep faith in the ability of journeys like this to restore the heart and renew emotional strength.”
The trip, which took place in Uganda’s breathtaking savannah and river landscapes, offered the mothers not only a physical distance from Israel, but a symbolic space to reconnect to life outside the framework of military funerals, commemoration ceremonies, and constant media coverage of the war. Participants shared meals, memories, photographs of their sons, and late-night conversations that helped build a new kind of sisterhood — one anchored not only in grief, but in shared courage and the commitment to live on in their children’s honor.
Journey 4Hope was founded on the belief that healing must be active, not passive. Rather than sitting in traditional therapy rooms, participants are placed in movement, in nature, in challenge, and in community, environments proven to reduce emotional blockage and increase openness, reflection, and self-expression. The organization has already led journeys to Africa, South America, Europe, and Israel, and is now expanding its programs to include post-journey support groups, resilience workshops, and tracks for spouses and siblings.
Shamir Medical Center, whose emergency, trauma, and rehabilitation departments treated thousands of soldiers and civilians during the war, has become a national leader not only in physical medicine, but in the emotional and psychological dimensions of recovery. The hospital is currently expanding its trauma and rehabilitation infrastructure to meet the long-term needs of injured soldiers, bereaved families, and civilians affected by the war, making this partnership with Journey 4Hope a natural extension of its mission.
The attached photo is of Prof. Levtzion-Korach and the bereaved mothers on the Journey 4Hope trip
Credit: Courtesy
