Project Spotlight: Elderly Club Renovations

Between 2015 and 2017, our ministry renovated as many as 100 elderly clubs across Israel. These clubs provide hot meals, which is important for seniors who don’t have the means or the ability to cook meals for themselves, and cannot afford outside help. Elderly also spend time socializing with friends and volunteers, which helps combat loneliness. Visiting an elderly club which The Fellowship recently renovated, The Fellowship’s Ami Farkas met with Bat Sheva who is the club’s director:

“This club has been open for a long time, but people stopped coming a few years ago,” Bat Sheva explained. “It wasn’t because they didn’t need a place to come, enjoy a hot meal, and feel a part of a community. It was because the building was falling apart. The walls were covered in chipped paint, the ceiling was cracking, and the space was unpleasant to spend time in.”

This is one of the elderly clubs which The Fellowship renovated in the past two years. “Ever since The Fellowship’s renovation of our elderly club we have become a second home to 38 senior citizens, who wait by the door from the early morning hours until we open at 7:45 am,” Bat Sheva explained.

As soon as the elderly enter the club, they receive a warm breakfast. The rest of the day is filled with activities, including Bible and holiday classes, exercise and art workshops, and a hot lunch at 1:00 pm. Then the elderly club is closed until the following morning.

“The folks that come to this elderly club are from all backgrounds, and need somewhere to go and to meet other people, to have something productive to keep them occupied, and to feel that they are part of a community of people who care about them.”

Bat Sheva expressed her gratitude for the renovations our ministry has funded for the elderly club. “I want to thank The Fellowship for bearing the great and awesome responsibility of caring for Israel’s elderly population. The Fellowship’s renovation of our elderly club has changed our community. The elderly now have a place to strengthen the ties they have with other seniors in their neighborhood. They never would have met these companions if not for this club.”

Learn how you can help elderly Jews and Holocaust survivors in need today.

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