Holocaust Remembrance Day - January 27

International Holocaust Memorial Day was marked on the 25th of January in the Haifa Home in the presence of consuls and ambassadors from many nations to show their support of the Jewish people. We were all moved by Mania, a Haifa Home resident and Holocaust survivor who shared her powerful story of hope in the face of such adversity.
It was a sobering event as she reflected on how, after the 7th of October, somehow the words "Never Again” seemed to have lost their meaning.
With the level of antisemitism now reaching the same level as it was in the 1930s, survivors are determined to raise their voices to ensure their stories and the stories of their families and people are not forgotten.
In Israel today, there are 137,401 Holocaust survivors and victims of antisemitic harassment during the Holocaust who are still alive and living in the land. Their ages range from 77 to 111 years old, and 62% are women.
We want to keep their stories alive, to support them, and to stand with them in this dark hour.

Renovation of the dining hall!
We are excited to now be renovating the Haifa Home dining hall. After years of wear and tear with broken ceilings, chipped paint, and exposed wiring, with your support, we have been able to start renovations.
Through connections in the area, we have hired Maya, a recent Russian immigrant with a degree in engineering and experience in interior design, to lead the renovation in the home as her first project in Israel!
Our goal is to create a welcoming, uplifting, and inspiring environment. We are redoing the wiring, painting the walls, and have completed the ceiling. We expect to have finished the renovations by February, so stay tuned for our grand opening ceremony!
Update on the Fitness Room
The survivors of the Haifa Home are overjoyed with their new fitness and physiotherapy room. Simcha, our physiotherapist, refers to this room as the 'Fitness Garden', and that is exactly what it is.
Walking into the room, the bright colors and many plants instantly spark joy and excitement. Looking around this beautiful space, you see some of the best equipment, specifically chosen according to the needs of the survivors. A massage bed, elliptical machine, and strength training equipment are just some of the tools Simcha uses to support the survivors. Not only this, but Simcha uses games and even therapeutic dolls to engage the survivors.

Creative Therapy
Nancy, the local art therapist, has continued to support the residents of the Haifa Home through these weekly creative therapies. Since the war, the nation as a whole has experienced trauma, heightened stress, and depression.
In response to this and to support the residents, we have expanded our creative therapy program.

Already, we have witnessed symptoms of depression and anxiety alleviated through these art therapy sessions.
This month, in these sessions, we have focused on Tu B'shvat (the new year of trees).
One of the activities was painting almond trees, which are the first trees to grow in Israel during this season.
This activity helps to focus survivors on the gift of life and the beauty that is in life; it helps them redirect their attention from the tragedies Israel is facing and the loss of life they have witnessed to the beauty of creation and new life.
When speaking to one of the ICEJ staff who complimented his artwork Arnold, a survivor from Ukraine said with a big smile, "Don't give me too much praise, or else I will become prideful!"
大屠殺紀念日 - 1 月 27 日
1 月 25 日，國際大屠殺紀念日在海法之家舉行，來自許多國家的領事和大使出席，以表達對猶太人的支持。 我們都被海法之家的居民、大屠殺生還者馬尼亞所感動，她分享了面對如此逆境時充滿希望的強大故事。

當她反思 10 月 7 日之後，「再也不會」這個詞似乎失去了意義時，這是一個發人深省的事件。
隨著反猶太主義的程度現在達到 1930 年代的水平，生還者決心大聲疾呼，以確保他們的故事以及他們的家人和人民的故事不會被遺忘。
如今，在以色列，還有 137,401 名大屠殺生還者和大屠殺期間反猶太主義騷擾的受害者，他們仍然活著並生活在這片土地上。 他們的年齡從77歲到111歲不等，其中62%是女性。
我們希望讓他們的故事鮮活起來，支持他們，並在這個黑暗的時刻與他們站在一起。
食堂改造啦！

我們很高興現在正在翻修 Haifa Home 餐廳。 經過多年的磨損，天花板破損、油漆剝落和電線裸露，在您的支持下，我們已經能夠開始翻修。
透過在該地區的聯繫，我們聘請了瑪雅（Maya），她是一位新近的俄羅斯移民，擁有工程學位和室內設計經驗，來領導住宅的翻修，這是她在以色列的第一個項目！
我們的目標是創造一個熱情、令人振奮和鼓舞人心的環境。 我們正在重新佈線，粉刷牆壁，並完成天花板。 我們預計在二月完成裝修，敬請期待我們的盛大開幕典禮！

健身室更新
海法之家的生還者對新的健身和物理治療室感到非常高興。 我們的物理治療師 Simcha 將這個房間稱為「健身花園」，事實也確實如此。
走進房間，鮮豔的色彩和眾多的植物立刻讓人感到愉悅和興奮。 環顧這個美麗的空間，您會看到一些最好的裝備，這些裝備是根據生還者的需要專門選擇的。 按摩床、橢圓機和肌力訓練設備只是西姆查用來支持生還者的一些工具。 不僅如此，西姆查還使用遊戲甚至治療娃娃來吸引倖存者。

創意療法
當地藝術治療師南希繼續透過每週一次的創意療法為海法之家的居民提供支持。 自戰爭以來，整個國家經歷了創傷、壓力增大和憂鬱。
為了回應這一點並支持居民，我們擴大了我們的創意治療計劃。
我們已經見證了透過這些藝術治療課程緩解了憂鬱和焦慮的症狀。
本月，在這些會議中，我們將重點放在 Tu B'shvat（樹的新年）。
其中一個活動是畫杏樹，這是以色列這個季節最早生長的樹木。
這項活動有助於生還者專注於生命的恩賜和生命之美； 它幫助他們將注意力從以色列面臨的悲劇和親眼目睹的生命損失轉移到創造和新生命的美麗。
一名來自烏克蘭的生還者在接受ICEJ工作人員稱讚阿諾德的作品時笑著說：「不要給我太多的讚美，否則我會變得驕傲！」