Faces of The Fellowship: Pekado and Katama Make Aliyah from Ethiopia
The Fellowship | January 6, 2021
Imagine trying to raise six children in a room that’s only nine feet by nine feet. This was Pekado and Katama’s challenge while raising their family in Gondar, a city in northern Ethiopia.
Many Ethiopian families live like them in cramped shacks made of mud. The married couple sent their older children to sleep in the neighbor’s home because there wasn’t enough room. Also, recent armed conflict started threatening the safety of Jewish families in Gondar, and turned an already troubling situation of poverty into a full humanitarian crisis.
Pekado admits: “Life is difficult in Gondar.”
Finding a Way to the Holy Land
For Pekado this situation is also a spiritual crisis, as he longs to return to the land of Israel. After all, he is a descendant from the Tribe of Dan, whose members migrated south to Ethiopia during the destruction of the First Temple. “My dream is that my children will be able to study and fulfill their dreams [in Israel],” says Pekado. Also, Katama hasn’t seen her parents in over 12 years since they made aliyah. “I want to hug my parents,” she says with tears.
If it weren’t for you supporting emergency Fellowship Freedom Flights to help the poorest Jewish communities in crisis, this family would never have made it to the Holy Land. But now, they recently landed in Israel, stepping onto biblical ground, thanks to you! Together, we’ve helped 80,000 Ethiopian Jews in a historic mission to return them home to Israel between 1985-2013, and will help the remaining 1,500 Ethiopian Jews return to Israel in 2021.
What a privilege it is to witness the fulfillment of biblical prophecy in our lifetimes. This family will always know you helped them make it to their promised land. Thanks to you, they have renewed hope for a better life.