By David Parsons, ICEJ Senior Vice President & Spokesman

ICEJ engaged in major building projects in southern Israel

After more than sixteen months of war, the Israeli communities along the Gaza border are slowly starting to return to their homes and plan for the future. The International Christian Embassy Jerusalem is working to support these devastated communities through numerous far-reaching initiatives aimed at helping them recover from the trauma of October 7 and rebuild their lives.

The residents of these villages in the western Negev realise that they will be dealing with the trauma and destruction inflicted by Hamas for years to come, and they are reaching out for help. The ICEJ is responding by supporting a number of rebuilding and recovery projects. Some of these initiatives are complete rebuilds from the ground up, while others involve major renovations and re-purposing of existing buildings that suffered extensive damages on October 7.

The communities we are assisting know that they need to attract their residents to return by not just rebuilding their homes but by building back their entire communities better than before. Many of the families of this region experienced traumatic events in their own homes, and those chilling memories will not be easy to overcome. One key to this rebuilding process will be to offer a wide range of community activities and services that might not have been so readily available in this area, and thereby make living back home more attractive.

The government is providing budgets to help rebuild destroyed private homes over the next few years, but each community will need to find funding to restore some of their public buildings, which are the real centers of their communal life together. These are the places which can so improve the quality of life for the local residents that they will be drawn back despite the bad memories of the Hamas invasion. Thus, the ICEJ has committed to helping with large rebuilding and renovation projects in several of these hard-hit communities near the Gaza border.

One such community is Kfar Aza, which was brutally invaded by over 300 armed Hamas terrorists on October 7. Out of 950 residents, 62 were murdered that day while 18 more were cruelly kidnapped into Gaza. The battle for Kfar Aza lasted several days, with many families trapped in their bomb shelters and clinging to hope of rescue. Roughly half the homes were severely damaged or destroyed by fire and explosions.

Within 48 hours, most of the survivors were evacuated to a hotel in Shefayim, a fellow kibbutz along the central coast. Many of them were recently moved into temporary housing in Ruhama, some 15 miles from Kfar Aza, where they will stay until their new homes are finished.

Given the physical destruction and mental strains of this whole ordeal, the residents of Kfar Aza and other hard-hit villages nearby need easy access to trauma care for their families so they can have the peace of mind it takes to return. They also will be drawn back if community services and activities are readily at hand for all the members of their families.

Thus, the ICEJ is investing in a series of major rebuilding and renovation projects uniquely tailored to enhance public life in these communities and thereby provide the incentives needed to draw residents back home. Here are descriptions of six such building initiatives and the common good they will bring to the Gaza border region.

Child Trauma Treatment Center in Kfar Aza
There are serious concerns among the Gaza border communities about the short and long-term impact of the October 7 massacres on their children. The plans to revitalise communal life at Kfar Aza include a special center for the treatment of trauma symptoms among the children, using the latest cutting-edge therapeutic techniques and equipment. With the ICEJ’s help, an existing kindergarten will be thoroughly renovated and repurposed to provide mental health care for children suffering from physical and emotional trauma.

The project is designed to provide a safe environment for youngsters of various ages to learn how to cope with and overcome the stress and insecurity they still feel from the terrorist onslaught. The center’s staff also will instruct and empower parents to deal with the lingering anxieties of their children and even themselves.

Music Therapy Center in Kfar Aza
This project will involve the total renovation of an existing public building in Kfar Aza to serve as a special center for various forms of music therapy for residents of all ages. The complex will allow for individual musical creativity and expression, which is recognised as an effective therapeutic tool for the relief and healing of extreme stress and trauma. The center will include rehearsal rooms, a recording studio, workshop space, and an open area for performances and community events. Thanks to the ICEJ’s assistance, the center also will offer a variety of musical instruments and quality sound systems. In addition, the musical performances coming out of this therapy center will help restore the sense of community on the kibbutz.

Youth Activity Center in Kibbutz Be’eri
A few miles down the road, Kibbutz Be’eri also suffered greatly on October 7.  Always known for its pioneering spirit, the community was devastated by the Hamas infiltration. Some 132 members were either killed or kidnapped into Gaza, including 51 elderly residents. Over 120 houses were destroyed, while the village’s kindergarten and after-school facilities were callously burned and vandalised. In response to the kibbutz’s request for help, the ICEJ has committed to rebuilding a destroyed youth activity center from the ground up. Hamas gunmen had turned the building into a command post amid the battle for the kibbutz, so it needed to be bombed and levelled. The plot has now been cleared, and construction will soon begin to help restore this key part of the educational support system in Be’eri. The center will provide group activities for youngsters who finish their school day in the early afternoon and need supervision until their parents come home from work later in the evening. They will receive meals, help with homework, and enrichment activities, while the center will also host summer and holiday camps for children. Such youth activity centers are quite common in Israel, as both parents work full-time in many households, and they are critical to a stable social life across the country. This will be even more needed as Kibbutz Be’eri rebuilds and invites their families to return, ensuring both parents have the option of going back to work.

Elderly Care and Activity Center in Kibbutz Be’eri
In the aftermath of the Hamas atrocities on October 7, the elderly residents of Kibbutz Be’eri have faced many hardships and will need special attention and care as they make their way back to their homes. Many have had difficulty adjusting to temporary stays in hotels that have lasted much longer than expected. The community also has a proportionally high number of retirees, which is only expected to grow as the village’s overall population ages in the years ahead. Thus, the Christian Embassy is helping to turn a damaged retirement home in the middle of the kibbutz into an elderly rehabilitation and activity center. The Ne’ot Be’eri facility will provide communal space for senior citizens to receive vital physical therapy and mental health care as well as enjoy cultural events and learning activities. The center will offer cognitive and physical recovery treatments and nursing services, along with uplifting group activities to encourage social interaction among the elderly kibbutz members of Be’eri.

Animal Therapy Corner in Kibbutz Urim
Not far away, the ICEJ has already been helping Kibbutz Urim recover and assist others in the area by investing in its animal therapy farm. We have recently donated three therapy horses to its ranch and sponsored horse-riding sessions for scores of Israeli children from the region in urgent need of trauma care. The Christian Embassy now is looking to restore and expand the animal corner first started decades ago by a now 97-year-old resident of Urim. Thanks to Christian support, the dilapidated petting zoo will undergo a major renovation and enlargement to provide trauma care to the children of the region, who already suffered from two decades of incessant Hamas rocket attacks even before the terror invasion of October 7. The revamped animal corner will feature lots of cute and cuddly animals, with comfortable new living spaces for them, plus two clinics, and areas for therapy sessions. Along with the therapy horse ranch next door, this promises to be a highly popular and beneficial place for the children of the western Negev to rebuild their sense of security and trust in the world around them.

Greenhouse Classroom in Sde Nitzan
Further south, the ICEJ is partnering with a brand-new agricultural school in Sde Nitzan by funding the construction of a large greenhouse classroom for their enterprising young students. The school was initially launched not long after October 7 when the founders witnessed high school students from across Israel coming as volunteers to the Western Negev to help harvest the crops amid the nearby fighting in Gaza. This birthed the vision to encourage similar students to come learn the latest farming techniques, conduct research in new agro-tech methods, and hopefully fall in love with the region and decide to settle here and help develop the land. There are currently 27 high school-age students at the school who also receive a basic education alongside their specialised agricultural studies. The Christian Embassy has agreed to now finance a large new greenhouse to serve as the main classroom for the students to learn greenhouse farming and conduct experiments on increasing the quality and yields of the fruits and vegetables they grow.

Time to Rebuild
Just as Nehemiah led the people of Israel in rebuilding the broken-down walls of Jerusalem, it is time for Christians to help rebuild the battered Israeli communities along the Gaza border. Indeed, the prophet Isaiah foresaw a time when God-fearing Gentiles would be involved in such efforts, saying “the sons of foreigners shall build your walls” (Isaiah 60:10).

This is a truly unique time for the Christian Embassy, as we have never had so many major building projects underway at one time. Some of the funding for these initiatives has already come in from generous Christians around the world, but we will need your help to complete these projects and hopefully move on to the next ones. The needs are great and an exceptional opportunity to bless and comfort the people of Israel is now before us.

While the road to healing will be long and strewn with challenges, these communities so appreciate that Christians are coming alongside them in their hour of need. Join us in helping them start to return and rebuild with a hopeful eye to the future. You can be part of this restoration and recovery process by supporting these vital building projects. Donate today to our ‘Israel in Crisis’ fund at:  help.icej.org/crisis

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