covid-19 – Ezer Mizion

Appreciation Down the Line

We’re there for you for the big things and the small

Ezer Mizion’s ‘ Corona Alumnae’ have selflessly volunteered to help others now suffering as they did, not so long ago. A group delivering cake to hospitalized patients received the following note:

On behalf of the patients here in the ward, we want to thank Ezer Mizion for the delicious cakes that your volunteers brought us and gave out to everyone with all their hearts from the world outside.

(You might not believe this, but we actually saw patients licking the cake crumbs!! For real!!)

The volunteers passed the appreciation down the line to those volunteers who had baked the cakes.

Shine a Little Light and Win Big Prizes

Things can be bad. But they’re worse when you have to face them alone.

Take Avi, for example. He was in elementary school when his parents got the news: Cancer.

The lights went out. Their lives turned dark.

Uncertainty. Which treatment should we pursue? Is a bone marrow transplant the best option?

Concern. How would we juggle his treatment and still care for the rest of the family?

Fear. Would Avi make it?

His parents watched as the light went out — it dimmed from Avi’s eyes, it disappeared from their home. The darkness shadowed over their family, as it does for thousands of families across the world. Avi’s is far from the only one.

But whether dealing with cancer, mental health, or special needs — there’s a glow in the dark. There’s an organization that shines a little light and helps them navigate the darkness.

Ezer Mizion gets 650,000 calls a year. They answer each one. Yes, we will be there for you.

We will guide you through treatments.

We will drop off hot dinners.

We will find you a matching donor.

We will provide mental health support.

We will send volunteers to the hospital.

How do they do it? What does it take to change a family’s world for the better?

Not much — just a little bit of light chases away the darkness. Ezer Mizion is holding a historic auction — one of the largest ever — and with each ticket that you purchase, you have the ability to replace darkness with light.

The auction features dozens of brilliant prizes, and with tickets starting at just $18, you can win anything from your dream vacation to your own Sefer Torah (Torah Scroll) or from home renovations to jewelry. The two grand prizes give you the chance to win $100,000 cash or your own late-model car. By participating in Ezer Mizion’s auction, you can help the organization to keep glowing.

This year, because of COVID, not only did Ezer Mizion’s income lessen, but their call volume rose astronomically. More people than ever are relying on the organization and, more than ever, Ezer Mizion is relying on you.

Families in Israel and around the world are relying on Ezer Mizion. You’re the one with the power to turn on the light.

Purchase your tickets at emraffle.org today and be their glow in the dark.

Wonderful!

“It was wonderful!”

A young girl was asked about her stay in a corona hotel over Yom Tov (holidays). Her answer shocked the questioner.

“Wonderful???! To be away from your family for Yom Tov? To spend Rosh Hashona, Yom Kippur and Sukos with strangers in a covid hotel?!”

When Words and Tomatoes Join Together to Create One Big Hug

She could have been living down the block from us but no one knew. She was a victim of terror with psychological wounds that never healed. Physically she was not in good shape either. She had been diagnosed in February with a severe lung infection and was extremely weak. Alone in Israel and helpless, she turned to the only address she knew. And that was how an Ezer Mizion director found a heartrending email in her inbox. Continue reading When Words and Tomatoes Join Together to Create One Big Hug

Maccabi Salutes Ezer Mizion

Maccabi Health Services known as Kupat Cholim Maccabi, is one of the four HMOs in Israel with over 2 million members and is considered an influential institution in regards to the Israeli healthcare system. Maccabi members benefit from diverse health services but there are many, many instances where help is needed. As Maccabi staff members can testify, Ezer Mizion is the address to turn to. Ezer Mizion’s goal: to be there for others. Their means: a professional, extensive network willing to think out of box in order to benefit the ill. Time and time again, when standard routine would not allow for the patient’s receiving what he needs, a call was made to the number they all knew by heart and the walls came tumbling down. Continue reading Maccabi Salutes Ezer Mizion

Their Challenges/ Our Mission/Your Pride

Each one was unique yet each one was the same. Each reflected an individualized situation much exacerbated by the Covid-19 situation. Yet each one was a desperate plea, “Please help me!’ sent to the address they have come to rely upon. Ezer Mizion’s Linked to Life is a whatsapp network spanning Israel and around the globe which receives requests that are as varied as those that send them. It may be a need for transport for an oncology patient, delivery of vital meds, putting together a Bar Mitzvah for a boy whose father is in serious condition, picking up medical equipment for a patient who cannot be released from the hospital without it. The list goes on and on.

During the pandemic, the Linked to Life networks were on fire. Requests didn’t stop. Linked to Life coordinated with other divisions of Ezer Mizion and was there for everyone in their time of need. Was it ten requests, a hundred, two hundred? and make no mistake. Each request did not have a one-step resolution. ‘I would check the network and come back half a day later and see 600 more.’ said a staff member who had access to the network. See chart above for the amazing numbers, all performed by our dedicated Ezer Mizion volunteers.

At the same time, all the other Ezer Mizion divisions – Bone Marrow Registry, Golden Age, Special Needs, Mental Health, Cancer Support, Transportation, Food Disbursement – were working at full speed. If we were to add those numbers, the totals would be mind boggling! How does this happen? Because of you, our invaluable friends and supporters!

We’re Here for Them

corona- Downs Bar Mitzvah- candy — As per instructions from the Bar Mitzvah boy himself

He’s turning thirteen and still living in a Corona hotel. He has Downs Syndrome and just ‘doesn’t get it’. His Bar Mitzvah will pass with nothing happening???. But his parents have their hands full and the logistics were overwhelming. Ezer Mizion has taken care of him since birth and will not abandon him now. The ‘boss’ himself was consulted and the menu based around his choices (sour sticks and candies). Every minute detail was handled to create the celebration of the century. Hotel guests were invited since there is no social distancing regulation at the hotel and our Bar Mitzvah boy was thrilled. How did the mother put it? “We’re at the stage when our situation doesn’t really interest anyone anymore. But the Ezer Mizion ‘champions of Tiveria’ don’t run out of steam. More treats, more events, everything possible for the Corona patients ‘imprisoned’ in the hotels…”

A family of nine still living at a Corona hotel. Very little clothing had been taken, not anticipating such a long stay. Continue reading We’re Here for Them

Saying Farewell to Corona – Let’s Hope it’s Final!

Tens of thousands of missions were shared with Israel’s Home Front Command! And Israel’s seniors, seriously ill, and people in quarantine were the first to benefit from it. Each mission accompanied with so much love!

Recently, to the sound of ongoing applause, the Home Front Command awarded Ezer Mizion a Certificate of Appreciation for dedicated partnership throughout the recent battle. A big “hats off” to Ezer Mizion’s team: our friends and supporters, staff and volunteers!Even as the ‘goodbye’s to corona’ have begun, the needs have not yet ended. Says Moshe Beeri, director of Ezer Mizion’s Northern Region: “Via 350 What’s App groups, we help thousands of people and families. We are in contact with the municipalities and the social services entities, and we deal with 2,000 calls and requests a day from across the country. Thanks to our volunteers, very many people feel that they have help and support during this period of hardship and that they are not alone.”

A volunteer has enlisted her five children to do supermarket shopping for an elderly couple who cannot leave their home. She and other volunteers cook and distribute meals for those who are unable to manage on their own.

Decorative fruit platters were just one of the ways to cheer up a hospitalized cancer patient who had recently undergone a transplant.

And what does a bus driver on furlough do nowadays?

He energetically plans a trip (not easy with corona regulations) for Ezer Mizion’s special needs children in Ashdod, finds a partner who donates the cost of a bus and gasoline, and together they serve as guides for the children and their accompanying staff for two days of a refreshing experience! The highlight was a visit to the petting zoo in Kefar Hanagid, where a blissful 17-year-old boy said: “For a whole month, I’ve been shut up in the house. You made me so happy!” Here are David and Nissim, the bus drivers with the golden hearts! David, the driver, mentors one of our special kids all year round, through Ezer Mizion’s Social Services Mentoring Department for Family Empowerment.

About 6 weeks ago, a couple left Corona-battered Italy and arrived with their four children to an empty rental apartment in Beit Shemesh. During their compulsory two-week isolation, during which they slept on thin mattresses and used coats as pillows, a friend from abroad gave them the phone number of Ezer Mizion’s Linked to Life, a WhatsApp network group for delivering items to people in need.

A message to the group: “Friends, we have a family here with four kids that just arrived from Milan and, due to the situation, they left Italy without any of their possessions. They have nothing — literally!!! Let’s try to help them!”

The message spread within minutes. The results: Religious, Chareidi, and secular alike all rallied to help. “Every ten minutes, someone drops a package at our door. Games, linens, food…”

Another neighbor opened a special headquarters, and before long, Ezer Mizion volunteers rallied to donate beds, electrical appliances, furniture, blankets, and linens to the family.. “We asked them what they needed, and all they requested was yogurt. In Italy, the yogurt isn’t kosher and the kids really wanted to taste one. They got their yogurt and so much more ”

Continue reading Saying Farewell to Corona – Let’s Hope it’s Final!

Two Letters/ Two Sides

A volunteer of grandfather vintage writes:

I went out today to distribute food. With lots of energy and good will, I came to collect the packages and got a list. Third floor, fourth floor, etc. No elevators. Ah, occasionally there was a ground floor…

Do I need to go up or do they come down? I tried to clarify. Continue reading Two Letters/ Two Sides

Corona Assistance: from North to South, from Morning to Night

Slowly but surely, we are settling into the Corona routine after trying weeks of extreme uncertainty. These days, more than ever, Ezer Mizion amazing power has shown bright once again. The tapestry of chessed that emerged and intensified in the last weeks revealed a vast empire of sensitivity and sincere empathy with people’s needs at all levels!

From North to South of Israel and beyond, from morning to night and then some, in numerous service areas and activities and to all segments of the Israeli population, Ezer Mizion has touched tens of thousands of needs and lives!

Petach Tikvah

Asa’el lost his mother and his three brothers in a horrible terrorist attack at their home in Itamar. He himself lost a leg. He could have been embittered about his situation, but, with great courage, he chose not to fall into that black hole, and instead to devote himself to giving. It began with his volunteering to purchase medications for an elderly couple and snowballed into his joining the 12,000 Ezer Mizion Linked to Life volunteers who are providing such vital services during the crisis of delivering hot meals, groceries, supplies and medicine to quarantined patients and seniors in the area. “I absorbed the great dedication and giving from my mother, A’H. This is carrying on her legacy of giving.” What can we say? A real hero!

Yotam Base, near Eilat:

Moriah, an IDF scout lookout somewhere out there on the Southern army base needed special medication. A call went out via Linked to Life. Within one minute (!), a volunteer responded. And no, it wasn’t “on his way”! He made a special 7.5 hour round trip drive for this!

Moriah: “I am in shock that a person should make such a long trip for people he doesn’t even know and with no personal interest! It’s inconceivable!” Don’t you agree?

Ofakim

Yehuda, a young adult with special needs, recently acquired a new friend. A devoted volunteer calls him on a regular basis. At times they learn together; at times they just chat. ‘It’s the highlight of his day,’ says his mother.

Yerushalayim

Corona patients staying at the hotel had no way to wash their clothes… The huge hotel laundry facilities are not available for the patients’ personal clothing and a real challenge developed with a lack of clean clothing for the interned patients who are not permitted to leave the premises. A donation was acquired to fund the purchase of a washing machine, a U-haul was hooked up manned by Ezer Mizion volunteers, and the machine was delivered at the Maaleh Hachamishah hotel for the patients’ use!

Elad

Moshe’s catering business is nil these days. Bitter? Angry? Instead Moshe has opened his business to provide meals for Ezer Mizion recipients. Kudos, Moshe!

Bat Yam

An army of volunteers, wearing masks and gloves, distributed 110 fragrant potted plants to the homes of Holocaust survivors in the city, adding color and vitality to their houses at this lonely time and a total of 1,800 plants delivered to survivors in 25 cities and towns around Israel.

Bnei Brak

340 bags of love were distributed to the homes of survivors, bearing candies, chocolates, scented sticks, a flower and a personal note.

Modi’in Ilit

After weeks of close collaboration with the Municipality, the Home Front Command, and the city’s emergency services, city Mayor Yair Drori had a clear message to deliver about the local Ezer Mizion branch: “You are our city’s outstanding model of chessed and civic involvement!”