By Sam Weiner
On February 1st, Cohort Three of the Nachshon Project traveled to the Shalva Children’s Center to hear about the incredible services they offer to individuals with special needs and to explore their brand new facilities. As a counselor for the special needs program at Ramah Wisconsin the past couple of summers, I was particularly excited for this tour. Having a place for individuals with special needs to work on their social skills, interact with their typical peers, while also providing meaningful Jewish experiences seemed like it was too good to be true outside of a camp setting. Yet the moment we got off the bus and saw perhaps the greatest playground of all time, it was clear that this was a really special place.
The playground was filled with everything you could possibly imagine. Slides, swings, see-saws galore, nobody could resist running around the entire park, including the rabbis. What was perhaps the most striking to me was the visual aesthetic of the playground itself. In addition to being right next to a gorgeous view of the city of Jerusalem, the park was full of vibrant reds, blues, and purples that made it seem like a nurturing, sensory filled paradise. I left the park eager for more. If we were able to have so much fun here for just 10 minutes, imagine what kind of thrill it would be for the people who get to spend every day here!
Once we were inside the building, we were greeted by our tour guide, Sammy Schaechter, who showed us an inspiring video about what Shalva is and what kinds of supports they can offer the individuals with special needs as well as their families. We then got to look in the building and see the magic in real life. Every floor was filled with incredible facilities that continued to leave us all in awe. There were two pools, one for therapy purposes, a cafeteria where some of the individuals with special needs work, and even a synagogue where b’nai mitzvoth take place for some of these individuals. I was blown away by how every floor was filled with beautiful paintings of animals or fairy tale characters. Like with the playground, the attention to detail with how every floor would look made Shalva a very fun, exciting place to be.
Finally towards the end of the tour we were able to come to the gymnasium where there were several volunteers and kids with special needs present. Kids were climbing up ropes, playing catch, overall having a really good time. The real fun came when someone got a medicine ball stuck on top of the basketball hoop. Everyone congregated around trying to get it down. Kids were taking turns trying to throw a smaller basketball at it with the assistance and encouragement from all of Nachshon. Eventually, with a little help from the staff, they threw up a basketball up at the same time and were able to get the medicine ball down resulting in cheers from everyone in the room. The pure joy and excitement from this very simple game isn’t something I’ll forget anytime soon.
At the very end of the tour, Schaechter talked to us about his own experiences working in Shalva and reflected on his own identity as a Jew recently making Aliyah. “Every night before I go to sleep I ask myself ‘was I a good person today?’" He found meaning in his life not only doing good things for others indirectly like giving charity, but rather establishing a relationship with those around him and treating them with respect including any waiter he has at a restaurant. Schaechter was particularly passionate during this speech and it was clear that he found his time at Shalva very rewarding.
Overall, I found my experience at Shalva to be very worthwhile. It was incredible to hear about all of the programs and facilities provided by Shalva and even more heartwarming to see the individuals they were providing all of these resources for. A big reason I applied to be on the Nachshon project was because of how much I’ve loved working with individuals with special needs at my camp. Seeing people from all over Israel work with that same type of love and affection at Shalva is something that I am inspired by and I hope to continue to be involved with Shalva during the remaining time I am here in Israel.
