Hey all-
Garin Kol L’Nashim is currently raising money for the shelters we have worked with over the year. The design comes in both tshirt and tanktop. If you would like a shirt please fill out the form here: http://tinyurl.com/gklshirtsform. At the moment we are only selling shirts in Israel, but if you are interested from America, please let us know and we will try to accomodate you! Thanks so much!
-Garin Kol L’Nashim
Of all the roles women play in this world, motherhood is the most ageless and essential. We very rarely stop to appreciate this most classic of the female’s jobs, but one day a year, Hallmark reminds us to turn around and say “thanks”. Well thanks to you Hallmark- you have given me an excuse to tell the world about my own lovely mother.
My mom was born and raised in Queens, NY. Her family wasn’t very well off, but they lived simply and happily. When it came time for college, she put herself through on scholarships and student loans. She studied nursing. After school, she worked in hospitals for a few years until she went to graduate school. There she became a nurse practitioner.
Upon graduating this second round of schooling, she volunteered to go abroad to Pakistan. There she worked in refugee camps helping the local population with all of their medical needs.
When she returned to America, she worked at various hospitals and home care until she took up a job at a public school in Harlem. As the school nurse, she was the kids’ primary care giver. I remember her taking me to work with her when I was younger. I always thought she was like a super hero- my super mom. She always knew what was wrong and how to fix it (a truism not only applicable to her medical knowledge).
My mom is an incredible woman; everything she has done in her life has been to help others. Yet, the thing I am most grateful to her for, is the way she has raised me. There was never a time where she did not look out for my best interests or go above and beyond for me. I can only hope someday I will be able to give to a child like she did to me. I love you mom! Happy Mother’s Day!
-Talia Niederman
It’s high time for another blog post and I have just the woman to write it about. Maiam is a Bedouin woman who lives just outside Be’er Sheva. She has lived there the majority of her life, over whose time she has woven herself a fascinating story.
In school, Maiam was extremely bright for her age and gained the attention of her teachers. She was thus connected with a British woman who provided the finance needed for Maiam to spend a year in England studying.
Over this time, Maiam learned about alternative medicine and various healing methods. When she came back to Israel, she continued her learning from her grandmother, a skilled healer in Bedouin medicinal methods. With her knowledge and passion, Maiam began to make soaps and other beauty products that embodied her acquired skill. She began from her kitchen, starting off slowly.
Her family did little to support her, frowning upon her decision to focus on a career while neglecting to pursue a husband and family. Ignoring the stigma surrounding her decision, she continued to build up her line of products.
Maiam is forty today and still unmarried and childless. While she has not been a success by her community’s standards, she has successfully defied all odds and become an independent, profitable businesswoman. Her company is still small, but she runs it with pride. She is one of the most confident and courageous woman I have ever met. You can see the products of Dessert Daughter (her company) here: http://www.desertdaughter.com/
Talia Niederman
Click here to read an interesting article on sex trafficking from Forbes.
I originally joined Garin Kol L’Nashim (A Voice for Women) because I thought they could use someone like me – someone who wanted to utilize social media and the web to spread their cause. I’m hoping to major in Business Marketing when I go back to the States, so this opportunity was perfect for me. However, I could have never predicted how much their passion for helping these women and the severity of the issue would speak to me. Soon enough, I became entrenched in the cause and began sharing their passion.
During our semester in Bat Yam, the Garin had decided to focus its efforts on collecting toiletries from hotels and El Al (Israel’s national airline) for donation. By the end of the semester, we were proud to find that we had collected 400 items of toiletries. With this excitement and amazement, the Garin took the toiletries to a shelter nearby. Though it was our last night in Bat Yam, I’m positive there’s no other thing any of us would have rather been doing.
When we got to the shelter to drop off our items, I had no idea what to expect. The other Garin members had been volunteering in the Tel Aviv Rape Crisis Center and at a women’s shelter, and knew the general ‘ins and outs.’ But with an open mind, I decided to enter a place that from the beginning seemed so welcoming and inspiring. The volunteers at the shelter were unbelievably nice and hospitable and the women who were there were very open to talking to the Garin. They were happy to take our items, but even more excited to give us a tour and answer any questions we had. I am the child of Russian-Israeli immigrants and speak fluent Russian. In Israel, the ability to speak Russian is almost, if not more, valuable than the ability to speak Hebrew. Israel is filled with post-Soviet immigrants who are often impoverished and uneducated and don’t speak Hebrew. I was able to communicate with the person showing us around as well as some of the women. It was incredible to be able to reach out in that way; I felt needed in a way I hadn’t imagined. We left the shelter with a sense of pride knowing our toiletries would be of good use and with the hope that we’d one day be back to help in other ways.
The experience I had at the shelter really made all the difference. Not only did I realize whom I was helping, I also realized the importance of the Garin’s work and the need for people to promote awareness about sex trafficking and abuse here in Israel. Now, I know that I am part of the Garin for all the right reasons and cannot wait to move forward with new and upcoming plans and ideas.
Ilan Simanin
Please sign these two important petitions for women who have fallen victim to sexual abuse.
Tell Village Voice Media to Stop Child Sex Trafficking on Backpage.com: http://www.change.org/petitions/tell-village-voice-media-to-stop-child-sex-trafficking-on-backpagecom?utm_campaign=QMEUOiBijS&utm_medium=email&utm_source=action_alert
Petition a law in Morocco which allows a rapist to avoid prosecution and a long prison sentence by marrying his victim: http://www.avaaz.org/en/forced_to_marry_her_rapist_b/?cjedWcb
