Volume 8, Issue 2 / Shevat 5765 / February 2005
Learning to (Day) Care for Others
Lamlam, Waykay, Sandy, Sakatees, Seentayo and Moozonesh are six of the lucky women who are currently benefiting from the 8-month Kedima course offered at the WIZO Center in the Beit Hakerem neighborhood of Jerusalem designed to teach immigrants from Ethiopia how to care for young children in a Day Care Center setting. These women, mostly single mothers who were referred by government and municipal social work offices, were selected along with fifteen others, to participate in a unique pilot project that will prepare them for a professional and much-needed means of income. However, finishing the course will not be an easy matter as evidenced by the departure of three women after only six weeks.
"We attend class five days a week for five hours each day and it is difficult - but wonderful. I have learned so much," said Seentayo. The others agreed. "We learn so much in class about child development. Our homework includes watching our own children grow and mature," added Lamlam.
A professional steering committee consisting of qualified educators, psychologists and social workers conceptualized this Day-Care-Takers course. Ronit, a Jewish Agency for Israel employee and member of the steering committee, remarks, "We hit upon an idea but really didn't know if the women we selected had the drive and passion to finish the course. After all, we designed a program that includes 100 hours of study for eight consecutive months. A total of 800 hours of study! But, so far, the women are great. We have been immensely pleased!"
"The element of professional training is basic to the program but the teaching of Hebrew as a communications tool is the key to success," emphasized Peninah Gefen, the Day Care Center director. Indeed, two days of study are devoted to learning Hebrew and three days to professional training. "In our homes, we speak Hebrew and Amharic," said one of the students, "but we understand that when we become caretakers, we will need to speak only Hebrew in the centers." But that is not the only transformation that needs to take place.
The women must make the mental transition from housewife or house-cleaner to student. The staff and steering committee members lament the rate of absenteeism. "We realize that the situation is difficult but certain rules must be enforced and limitations need to be set," explains Peninah. "On the other hand, we understand that we need to be flexible." Sadly, the teacher points out that two participants live in sheltered homes and another was abused in the past.
The most veteran member of the class is forty-seven years old. The youngest is about twenty. There are three women, who live in Mevaseret Zion, a town about 10 kilometers west of Jerusalem in the Judean Hills, who have been in Israel less than one year and two women who have been living here for nearly fourteen years. Yet, all get along and encourage each other. "We didn't know each other before the class started but we come from similar situations and backgrounds. We need and support each other," smiles Moozonesh.
Ronit adds, "All of these women are faced with enormous personal issues, but the one common and overriding factor is their need for money. The course is funded and we pay for their transportation but their average income per month is a mere 2,000 NIS (about $450). Indeed, with the Jewish Agency for Israel serving as catalyst and facilitator, a comprehensive funding proposal was prepared. The Jewish Federation of Greater Washington answered the call.
"I love children," explains Sakatees. "Without this program, I would be cleaning houses until I was too old to even do that. Now, when I wake up in the morning I can look in the mirror. I want my certificate and want to earn a living. I will make it to the end because I want to make my six-year old daughter proud of her mother."
Written by: Arnold Ben-Dor
Photos by: Leon LevitasTo download this file as a word document, click here.
