Update from Sderot

Work continues on the new Women’s Health Center funded by NA’AMAT USA.

Plans for the construction of a new Women’s Health Care Center in Sderot, Israel, funded in part by NA’AMAT USA, are proceeding at a brisk pace. Shirli Shavit, Director of the International Department of NA’AMAT, reports that the new center is expected to be complete by Pesach 2017.

An existing daycare facility is being renovated for the new health center. “The initial permits and planning are done,” writes Shirli. “Our engineer was there a few times and we are just about to begin the actual renovations and needed constructions. We plan to host the formal festive opening next June during the annual meeting of NA’AMAT International.”

Modeled after a NA’AMAT facility in Karmiel, the new center will provide services for as many as 500 women, including health care screenings, legal assistance, psychological counseling, exercise classes and recreational activities and other services currently lacking in the community. “Children of the mothers will also benefit from special projects that we are planning, especially during times that the security situation is tense, which, unfortunately, happens a lot.”

Sderot is a community with unique needs. A small city in the Western Negev, it is located less than a mile from Gaza and has been the target of rocket attacks by Hamas and other radical terrorists groups since 2001. At least a dozen residents have lost their lives, and millions of dollars in damage has profoundly disrupted daily life. At least 75 percent of the city’s children suffer from post-traumatic stress. The women in Sderot are so preoccupied with the health and welfare of their families, many do not have the time to travel out of their area to seek preventative health care for themselves.  The new NA’AMAT Women’s Health Center will fill a critical void in the community’s social services network.

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