Residential Shelter |
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Located in the heart of a thriving residential neighborhood in the city, Woman to Woman’s Jerusalem Shelter for Battered Women provides a caring and supportive setting to aid the victims of physical, sexual, emotional, verbal and economic abuse. Residents find immediate refuge and practical assistance – accommodation, food, clothing, child care, legal assistance – a safe and supportive environment offering them the possibility of regaining a measure of control over their lives, the promise of a change for the better. The Shelter opens its doors to women caught in a vicious cycle of unstoppable and inescapable violence, at a crucial and vulnerable time in their lives. They are religious and secular Jews, Christian and Muslim Arabs, new immigrants and veteran Israelis, all sharing a history of domestic violence and repression. They come from all over the country, alone or accompanied by their children, welcomed here regardless of economic situation, age, religion, race, education, nationality, or ethnicity. Our primary goal is to help them try to fill emotional voids, reassemble their lives and leave the cycle of violence behind them. The basic framework to achieve this goal is a personally adapted “empowerment program” combining group and individual counseling to increase self-esteem, improve life skills and work proficiency, enhance parenting, and encourage self-sufficiency. The unstinting efforts of our experienced and highly qualified staffers (professional director, social workers, counselors, children’s care-givers, legal advisor, psychological and psychiatric referrals) are augmented by dedicated volunteer mentors who contribute their time and talents to enriching the residents’ stay at the Shelter. The Shelter operates under the supervision of the Israel Ministry of Labor, Welfare and Social Services. To ensure that their safety is not compromised, residents must be referred to us by social welfare authorities, hospitals, emergency centers, or the police. Up to 12 families at any given time stay with us for an average of six months. To derive the most from the resources offered at the Shelter, to ensure a measure of privacy, and to soften the abrupt transition from an enclosed family to an often loud and hectic community lifestyle, whenever possible each family is given its own space comprising bedroom and adjacent shower and toilet facilities. At the same time, the shared spaces – living areas and dining room – are fertile ground for working through inevitable disharmonies among residents under the guidance of the Shelter staff. Professional literature – and the residents themselves – confirm that meeting other women who have experienced abuse and repression at the hands of their partners is in itself an invaluable resource for unlocking the conspiracy of silence and secrecy that permeates domestic violence, and this can lead to the creation of healthy and strong bonds between women. |
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