In collaboration with our partners at ESHEL Colel Chabad in Israel, The Fellowship is participating in a national initiative to provide food and financial security for individuals and families facing poverty. For some of the people The Fellowship has helped through this initiative, life can change in the blink of an eye. This was the case for Dana’s family in Ashdod, who Fellowship staff visited last week.
Dana and her husband, Maayan, lived an ordinary life with their five children. The family was financially secure, and both parents worked full-time. That all changed nearly four years ago when their eldest daughter, Talia, was diagnosed with leukemia. At that moment, both Dana and Maayan left their jobs to be by her side. Two-week hospital stays became common as Talia underwent treatment at Schneider Children’s Medical Center.
Dana recalled, “When they told us Talia was sick, I felt like my world was falling apart. But Talia told me, ‘Mom, I see it differently. The Creator of the Universe gave me this illness, and He will also help us get through it.’”
Before long, the family fell behind on rent as their income disappeared and medical and living expenses mounted. They also faced another tragedy when Dana’s younger sister passed away from breast cancer. This loss was especially painful while Talia was battling a different form of cancer—one that could become life-threatening. Despite everything, the family remained united in supporting Talia, while her younger siblings adapted to a difficult new reality. It was during this time that Dana reached out to The Fellowship for help.
The Fellowship began supporting the family with food vouchers and eventually hope arrived for Talia as well. Two years ago, she underwent a bone marrow transplant and began showing signs of recovery. This year, she finally returned to school. She has no grand plans for summer vacation. All she wants is to spend time walking with her mother and family.
Dana says of her children, “They really are modest children. We don’t need much. We don’t need hotel vacations or expensive things. We can take a blanket, go to the park, and have a small picnic, and everyone enjoys it. The main thing is that we are together and that the children are healthy.”
Today, Dana and Maayan have returned to work, but they continue to face significant financial challenges as they work to pay off accumulated debt. Dana works mornings as a preschool assistant and later in the day at a nursing home, while Maayan works long hours as a forklift driver. The family is also searching for a new apartment because their current building is part of an urban renewal project.
“Sometimes it’s hard for us to even buy basic food. Every morning I have to prepare lunches for the children to take to school. Sometimes they ask for a small treat, like yogurt or a triangle of processed cheese for their lunchbox. These are small things, but when you have to calculate every single shekel, even these small things become significant,” Dana said.
During Fellowship staff’s visit, Dana received a phone call from the electric company regarding an outstanding debt that dates to Talia’s illness. The Fellowship immediately referred the family to our joint project with power companies, which helps families pay off electricity debts before they grow even larger.
Today, Dana and her family continue to receive food vouchers and other forms of financial assistance from The Fellowship as they work toward rebuilding their lives. Dana expressed her deepest gratitude to the donors who made this support possible.
“I want to say thank you from the bottom of my heart. People may not always see the impact of what they give, but for us, it is an immense help. During our hardest times, when we didn’t know how we would make it through the month or cover all our expenses, The Fellowship was there for us. Thank you to The Fellowship and to all the donors who stand behind it. Thanks to you, we are able to keep moving forward. May you always be on the giving side, and may you never lack anything good, just as you help ensure that others do not lack.”
“The Lord sustains them on their sickbed and restores them from their bed of illness” (Psalm 41:3).
