Work Projects and Participants for Each Trip

October 2002 - First work Trip

Day 1 Volunteered with Christian organization in Jerusalem.

Day 2 Worked on home of single Mom, Orna.
Painted her house and fix some caulking problems in the bathroom and kitchen.
Painted the small apartment of family in Rishon Lezion.

October 2003 - Second Trip

Day 1 Painted the home of Hannah and Helil - also repaired windows that were broken.

Day 2 The group worked in the home of a single Mom. Her front door was broken and would not lock. We fixed her broken oven and repaired the work space so she could continue to make jewelry - her only income to support her children.

Day 3 We finished up work from day 2 plus worked in her yard.

May 2004 - Third Trip

Day 1 We began working in the apartment of Shoshana. Shoshanna's husband was killed two years before while guarding a grocery store. An Arab woman attempted to enter the store with explosives strapped to her body. When he tried to stop her she blew herself up killing both of them. Shoshanna has three children - two that are deaf. We met her son Nati when he returned from school. He did not want us painting his room. It was obvious he was having a difficult time with our presence in their home. He did not want the apartment changed. The last time it was painted his father had done the work. Later that evening his mother called to say Nati had had a change of heart and wanted us to work on his bedroom too. We returned and worked together with Nati to paint his room. When the work was finished he got out picture albums to share with us about his father, how he died saving others from a terrorist and how lonely he was without his father.

Day 2 On this day we met Ekka, a single Russian immigrant whose sister was killed while riding a bus to work at a local hospital. Ekka, who was a university professor in Russia and her sister, a concert pianist, could not find work in Israel, so the sister worked in the hospital kitchen to do what she could to provide for the family. After her murder the elderly father died of a broken heart. We painted all day at Ekka's home. At the end of the day, she served us some homemade Russian treats and shared her huge burden of grief as tears ran down her face. She was in a panic, not knowing how to provide for her two children and mother. (A year later Ekka's Mother passed away and Ekka sunk even lower into financial problems. She sublet her apartment and moved into a one room, windowless bomb shelter trying to keep the family together. She eventually returned to Russia.)

Day 3 Our third day in this trip found us at the apartment of David and Ariella and their four children. David was repeatedly stabbed by four Arabs about four months before our arrival. His recovery was slow and this caused him to lose his job. The trauma and loss of income overwhelmed him to the point he became deeply depressed and silent, shunning friends. The Shiloh family lived in a very simple but clean apartment. It had not been painted in years. We spent the day painting every room. As the day and work progressed, David began to open up and talked about what had happened to him. He showed us his scars and seemed to be unable to stop talking about the horrible day of the attack and how it changed his life. We didn't know we were going to receive an added blessing that day. David was trained as a chef and cooked a wonderful lunch for us. We were humbled knowing how much money he had spent on the food - food that could have fed his family. As we left that day he presented each family with a gift. We were speechless.

On the same day two of the men in our group went to the home of Vicki and Michael. Their son had head injuries from a recent terrorist attack. He spent his days lying on his bed. Their roof had leaked the winter before causing water to run down the walls of one bedroom. This was the bedroom for the other children in the family. The floor was covered with mattresses since they had no beds. So when the rainy season came the mattresses would get wet and the walls would cover with mold. Not a healthy condition for the children.

October 16-28, 2004 - Fourth Trip

Day 1 Our first day of work was at Rosa and Avraham's apartment. Avraham had been shot in the leg and was still disabled from the injury. They had teenagers plus two small boys. When we arrived we saw no toys for the boys to play with. Since the attack on Avraham, the parents were so fearful the children were not allowed outside to play and the house was kept locked and shutters closed. Having no beds the two small boys were sleeping on the floor. We painted the house and spent some time with the family. We were thankful that we had packed some toys in our luggage. The boys were thrilled and never stopped playing with their new wind up cars.We purchased a trunnel bed for the boys. Because of floor space this bed was perfect. It could be pulled out at night and put back during the day.

Day 2 Our second day of work was for a single Mom, Lydia, who lives in a tiny apartment in Jerusalem. Lydia has four daughters - her eldest daughter Yaffit was injured in a bombing on Ben Yehuda Street in Jerusalem. The others were grown but of no help or support to Lydia. Lydia's apartment was dirty and in shambles. It was a challenge to get it painted. But when we finished cleaning the kitchen, putting a light back in the bathroom and fixing the shower so they could again take baths, Lydia was so thrilled she invited her neighbors in to view the finished product. It was like a holiday with the front door open and people coming and going. They were shocked that American Christians would care enough about Lydia, in her tiny, dirty apartment, to spend the day working and cleaning and even bringing gifts of linens and toiletries.

Day 3 A more difficult day was spent in the home of Moshe and Tsila and their four children. The work was not difficult but hearing the story of their son, Oz, age 12, who had head injuries from a terror attack, was heart breaking. Oz was typically all boy, loved to play soccer and enjoyed life. After his injury, he went to school sporadically, no longer played soccer and struggled with many strong emotions. The parents said he is not the happy boy they remembered. One person working in our team that day was Ernie, a retired firefighter from Pensacola, FL. He was painting in Oz's room as the boy lay motionless on the bed. He wasn't sure how much Oz understood English but he continued talking to him about his job and what it was like to be a firefighter. The boy suddenly sat up in bed and hugged Ernie's neck and in broken English said he remembered a firefighter rescuing him from the bus after the explosions of the terror attack. We painted the apartment, bought two doors that were needed and sat and drank coffee with the parents. Our hearts went out to them as they struggled to know how to help their son.

May 29-June 10, 2005 - Fifth Trip

Day 1 On this trip we sent out three groups each day to work. The first day one group painted and repaired the apartment of Batsheva and Motti in Katamon. Their daughter, Neta, was injured in the Hillel café bombing. Another group went to the home of Shoshi and Ehud in Katamon. Their daughter Shimrit was also injured in the Hillel café bombing. The third group painted and repaired the apartment of Etti in Givat Zeev. Etti's husband Zion was murdered two years before. She has 6 children. The 11 year old has Downs Syndrome and was in the hospital while we were there working.

Day 2 The first group painted and repaired the apartment of Hava and Itshak in Gilo . Itshak was injured in the Hillel café bombing. The second group painted and repaired the apartment of Edna in Batar Elite.. Edna's husband David was murdered in Hebron.She has two children a boy age 7 and a girl age 5. Edna had not lived in her apartment since her husband's murder and was finally planning to move back home. We not only painted but also paid for an electrician to come and fix the electrical problems in the home. The third group painted and repaired the apartment of Shira in Har Homa. Shira's husband lost his legs in a terrorist bombing. Unable to deal with his disability he later left Shira. She has 4 children, ages 7, 6, 4 and 2. She came to hotel to talk and to thank us on our last day in Jerusalem.

Day 3 The first group painted and repaired the apartment of Miriam in Neve Yaacov. Miriam was injured 8 years ago in a bombing. The second group went back to Shoshanna's home to paint bedroom. Shoshannah was helped in May 2004. Her son helped work on Miriam's home. The third group painted and repaired the apartment of Elana. She is a single mother with a broken wrist, who has four grown children living at home. We painted three rooms and left gifts of jewelry, towels and toiletries.

Day 4 Our last assignment took us to Dalia in Samaria. We had to have an army escort to get to the settlement where the family lived. Dalia's twelve year old daughter was murdered by two terrorists who infiltrated the settlement while she played in the front yard with a friend. When we arrived the house was closed and dark. The teenage son dropped out of school soon after the death of his sister. The family seemed to have lost all hope. We painted two rooms and cleaned black mold off the bathroom ceiling and walls. The grief in the home was so tangible it was hard to focus on the work to be done. The mother was so nervous having strangers in the home that she trembled. When we finished working we had to again wait for an escort to leave and go back to Jerusalem. As we waited for our military escort, we tried to talk to Dalia and her children but it was obvious it was very difficult for her. The group prayed for the family as they worked that day and we continue to pray for them. We hope to return again at a later date and do more work in the home.

November 6-18, 2005 - Sixth Trip

Day 1 On our fiirst day we went to meet Gladys, a single Mom, who immigranted from Argentia. She lived in two small rooms with her 10 year old daughter. We painted both rooms and bought a new bed for her daughter. Gladys takes in laundry to support her daughter. While we worked she fixed a delicious lunch for us.

Day 2 The second day we met Zahava, a widow with two grown children living at home. Her husband died two years before. She works at two different jobs to make ends meet. She only asked that we paint the windows and door facings in her home. She also fixed a wonderful lunch for us.

Day 3 Our last project was the apartment of Bracha, a widow who lives in Ranana with her two daughters. The team worked two full days painting her home, repairing the toilet and patching huge holes in the walls. Her home was in a very bad condition. Bracha's husband had been dead for 10 years and there had been no one to paint or do repairs. She was embarrassed for us to see the condition of her apartment but thankful that it looked much better when we left.