The ceramic and paper-mache studio gives the residents the opportunity to be creative and at the same time exercise their muscles. Task complexity depends on the amount of muscle control the residents have. The more dexterous can push a lever back and forth to paint the pottery. Those who can only move their necks are encouraged to exercise these muscles by knocking their heads against the button that operates the mixer and cuts up the paper. The finished products can be purchased via ALEH’s website.
In the residential unit on the second floor, Hirth points out the homey touches. The children each have personalized boards next to their beds so that they can display family shots. And for those children who don’t have any family to boast of, the staff poses with a smile and a hug. “The children each have their own wardrobe, and just like in any large family, when they outgrow something we check to see if we can pass it on to one of the other children,” he says.
A Hospital at Home
ALEH Jerusalem is the only residential home that maintains its own hospital. That means children can attend school, receive therapy and take part in daily activities, instead of being confined to a hospital bed. For a child like Avi, who spends over a month in the hospital every winter fighting respiratory illnesses, being in hospital in his home means that he doesn’t miss his schedule.
“We have a full-life approach,” says Rikki Frohlich, who has been the facility’s head nurse for twelve years. “We don’t just care for the children; we make sure they have the best quality of life.” She explains that quality of life is different for each child: for some children, it’s assisting them to breath, for others it’s a trip to the beach. “We believe that our children can improve, whether it’s learning how to bend a finger or how to eat by themselves instead of being fed by a gastro tube.” In order to meet his or her goals, each resident has a personalized learning program that is assessed twice a year. “Working at ALEH changes you,” says Frohlich, who thought she wouldn’t last longer than a week when she began to work here. “You learn to appreciate what you have. ALEH has a soul that comes from the people who live here,” she says.
Raising Awareness
ALEH works on several fronts to break down the stigma surrounding those who look different but aren’t all that different from the rest of us. At the forefront is the volunteer project. “Volunteers come from all over the world to do activities like blowing bubbles with the children or to help move them around,” says Hirth. One of the most popular projects is Sweet Dreams. Thanks to this project, which involves four seminaries in Jerusalem, every night, 15 to 20 girls come in to tuck the children into bed with a song and the recital of Shema, just like in any Jewish home.
In July 2012, shoppers at the Mamilla Mall were surprised by the first wheelchair flashmob dance ever to be held in Jerusalem. Twenty residents of ALEH Jerusalem, each accompanied by a volunteer, entered the outdoor promenade in the next step towards encouraging the integration of the disabled into Israeli society. “People are looking for opportunities to give to the disabled,” says Hirth. From the mall management who offered the use of their sound equipment, to the shoppers who stopped to clap and join the dancing, everyone enjoyed the opportunity to give to the disabled.
Another popular awareness project that unites the residents with the wider community is the Jerusalem Marathon held annually just before Pesach. This year, ALEH residents, seated upright in their wheelchairs, completed 800 meters of the run over the Chords Bridge surrounded by volunteers wearing luminescent green T-shirts.