A Guiding Light for a Community in Need

The Fellowship  |  December 20, 2017

This Hanukkah, The Fellowship and our faithful donors were able to help countless Israelis struggling with poverty and other obstacles. The Jerusalem Post’s Rachel Cohen tells us about one community who has been provided with miracles by those who love Israel and her people:

For most of his childhood, Nati Taka didn’t know what he wanted to be when he grew up. This, of course, is nothing out of the ordinary.

But for Taka, who was raised in an impoverished neighborhood in Petah Tikva, being direction-less seemed a risky situation that might lead him down a dark path.

“I had friends who went to juvenile prison,” Taka said.

“My mom and dad, thank God, they held me strongly. I didn’t wander around. I had a sense of discipline and an obligation to be a role model for my younger brothers.”

That need to do the right thing has governed Taka for much of his life. Now 25 and working for the Ministry Justice in Petah Tikva, he credits a solid upbringing and time spent with the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews’ Azimuth program as being his guiding light.

Azimut is a program for poor Israeli youth to ensure they receive the same opportunities as everyone else. This includes, for example, pre-army courses that help them obtain coveted roles in the IDF, or vocational training and academic scholarships once they are discharged so they can find decent employment and handle the daunting responsibilities of adulthood…