AMERICAN FRIENDS OF THE ISRAEL NATIONAL COUNCIL FOR THE CHILD

The OCY was established in 1990 to defend and protect Israel's children against violence, cruelty, exploitation, depravation, neglect and other maltreatment and to serve as an advocate for children in all aspects of life.

 

Every year approximately 9,000 requests for assistance from across the country reach the OCY on everything from reports of abused children to calls from teens taken advantage of at work to problems effecting children in school...and everything in between.

 

The OCY provides information and advice on issues concerning the child's welfare and wellbeing, directs and coordinates the proper services towards a solution or intervention, mediates disputes, monitors  services for children's rights and campaigns before the authorities on behalf of the children in distress. The OCY is the child's advocate, always representing the child's best interest.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Translation of a thank you letter (from Hebrew) received from a boy at a boarding school and addressed to Baruch, a long-standing OCY volunteer.

 

"I do not know you and you don't know me but I feel that I need to thank you.  My name is E--.  I have been attending the (Boarding School) for the past three years.  I couldn't stay in my town because no school wanted to accept me.  And besides that I wanted to run away from home and from my father who would beat me without stopping.  I had friends who influenced me to do all kinds of things that I'm embarrassed to tell you. 

   

The school accepted me with open arms and dealt with all the difficult problems that I caused.  The school slowly came to be my first home and there was a time that I didn't even go home for vacations. 

         

This week I went to the Social Worker who has been helping me since I arrived.  We were remembering my first period here and the trouble I made. When I tried to thank her for her help, she told me that the real thanks goes to you mainly because if you hadn't helped arrange things for me with social services three years ago, I would never have been able to stay here. THANK  YOU, BARUCH!!! Without your help I would be in the street today or perhaps even worse than that.  Because of you I am now studying steadily in a boarding school."