Why we opened this campaign
Ekaterina lives in Yokneam and is raising her two sons on her own. She works, does her best to support her family independently, and does not want to rely on charity. But the past few months have left her in a situation that is almost impossible to overcome without support.
Since September of last year, Bituach Leumi (Israel's National Insurance Institute) has stopped paying Ekaterina income support benefits (Havtachat Hachnasa), which are intended to ensure a minimum level of income.
For a long time, Ekaterina could not even get a clear explanation for why the payments had stopped. Only about six months later was she told that the reason was an insufficient number of working hours — fewer than 25 hours per week.
But throughout those months, her family still had to survive: pay rent and bills, buy groceries, and provide everything her two children needed.
While Ekaterina was trying to resolve the situation with government authorities, her debts continued to grow.
Today, she works through the municipality, filling in at schools and special education kindergartens. She is not sitting idle and continues to look for ways to increase her income. Together with a social worker, Ekaterina has also begun the process of applying for assistance and accessing the government benefits to which she is entitled.
But this process takes time. According to our estimates, it will take about three months to arrange the necessary assistance. And her family somehow needs to survive those three months.
Ekaterina's financial situation is now so difficult that buying anything beyond food and basic necessities is practically out of the question. On weekends, kindhearted people help the family by providing prepared meals.
At the same time, Ekaterina does not simply want to pay off another debt only to find herself in the same situation again. She wants to work and gradually become financially independent. Together with her social worker, she is now exploring opportunities for further education and professional development so that she can increase her earnings in the future.
We are launching this fundraising campaign not to support the family indefinitely. Our goal is to give Ekaterina three months of breathing room.
Three months during which our social worker can work on securing government assistance, while Ekaterina continues working and caring for her children without sinking deeper and deeper into debt.
The funds raised will help the family cover essential everyday expenses and partially address their accumulated financial obligations until government support becomes available.
Sometimes, a person does not need someone else to solve all of life's problems for them.
They simply need help getting through the difficult period until the support system starts working and they can once again rely on their own strength.
That is exactly the kind of support we are asking for today for Ekaterina and her two sons.
Every donation means a few more days of peace of mind for this family.
Every share increases the chance that they can get through the next three months without new debts and without fear of what tomorrow may bring.
Together, let's give Ekaterina these three months.
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