Project Spotlight: With Dignity and Fellowship
The Fellowship | September 8, 2020
With the compassionate support of wonderful friends like you, The Fellowship’s With Dignity and Fellowship program provides thousands of elderly in Israel with food, clothing, medications, visits and check ins, and emergency funds for basic needs. We help people like Tzivya.
‘God Bless You for Your Help!’
Tzivya knows how it feels to be desperately lonely. She lost her husband six years ago and has been grieving ever since. Most nights, Tzivya is so anxious that she cannot fall asleep until 5am. “I listen to prayers on the radio. It calms me down somewhat, but then I remain in complete silence.”
This silence drags on, and she waits for someone — anyone — to visit.
Her son lives nearby, but he is dealing with his own physical and mental health challenges, so he cannot visit often. Her granddaughter, Daniela, does visit, the one light in Tzivya’s life. She visits and cooks for Tzivya a few hours a day, while Tzivya looks after her granddaughter’s new baby.
These hours are precious, but pass too quickly, and then Tzivya — who is hard of hearing, nearly blind, and suffers from diabetes — is left alone for most of the day feeling forgotten. When she’s alone, there’s no way she can take care of herself. Just warming up a bowl of canned soup is a challenge. And during the global pandemic, her anxieties about her health have worsened, adding to her overall stress.
As her health continues to decline, Tzivya has become completely reliant on her granddaughter and her social workers. However, another light entered her life recently when you decided to support The Fellowship and our ministry that reaches out to provide for and comfort poor Tzivya and so many others like her.
Because of you, The Fellowship stepped in with immediate help and she now is in our With Dignity and Fellowship program. Tzivya needs many medicines on a daily basis, so thanks to you we help her cover the additional costs not provided by the Israeli government. She receives Fellowship holiday food boxes to help her celebrate these sacred days with joy. We also knew she’d benefit from calls by Fellowship volunteers to cheer her up. The first time we called, she teared up with emotion because of how much this extra attention means to her.
Tzivya isn’t forced to sit in silence anymore. She couldn’t stop repeating: “God bless you for your help!” And she means it with all her heart.
You Can Help
The High Holy Days is the holiest time of year for the Jewish people. Right now, The Fellowship is praying for resources to prepare enough High Holy Days food boxes in time to give charity to Jews whose only prayer is to have food on the table during this sacred season. Please give as generously as God allows today.