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Most women referred to the Jerusalem Shelter arrive with their children, who are quickly introduced to the on-site Children’s Center, open all-year round for residents’ youngsters. The children accompanying their mothers have lived all their lives in the shadow of violence and terror, directly or indirectly, and this has left an indelible mark on them. Most of them suffer from some degree of emotional, developmental and/or functional challenges, which are compounded by the trauma of suddenly finding themselves uprooted from home, in unfamiliar surroundings, unprepared for the tumultuous change in routine that the Shelter constitutes. Frightened, confused and vulnerable, this immediate crisis can also be the beginning of a positive, far-reaching change that can help them extract themselves from the cycle of violence that all too often impacts on succeeding generations as well. The reassuring atmosphere of this unique facility provides a nurturing, educational and therapeutic framework.
Woman to Woman opened its Children’s Center almost immediately after the Shelter itself was founded. Every year over 100 children – infants through adolescents – make use of the Center, which is open every day from 8 a.m. until 6 p.m., staffed by a professional team of counselors and educators trained and devoted to responding to the children’s unique needs, offering physical and emotional care, school help, a sympathetic ear, and a warm hug. Above all, the Children’s Center is a setting in which the children can be just that: children, who play, laugh, cry, get angry, and make friends, perhaps for the first time in their lives. The children are assessed and individual programs adjusted for them, emphasizing the development of appropriate channels for expressing anger, fear and frustration.
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