Ruchama is a pretty, bright 17-year-old girl.  She enjoys going to youth group meetings, playing monopoly and reading Nancy Drew mysteries.  When Ruchama was a few weeks old she was rushed to the hospital; her life hung in the balance for a week.  The situation eventually stabilized, but in addition to the kidney and brain damage she sustained, doctors discovered that Ruchama suffered from an extremely rare, degenerative neurological disease.  Despite the fact that today Ruchama is in a wheelchair and cannot dress, bathe or feed herself, she goes to a regular school, has many friends, and even rides a bike! (specially modified for the disabled).

Ruchama’s mother is responsible for this success.  Her tireless efforts to ensure that her daughter had all the possible therapy, medical and social support possible gave Ruchama a chance at a real teenage life.  In addition to managing Ruchama ,  she takes care of her other six children and works part-time.  However, now that Ruchama has grown older, her mother can no longer care for her daughter’s physical needs alone.  Getting Ruchama up, dressed, fed all her medications (through a special gastro tube as Ruchama has difficulty swallowing) and ready for school is physically challenging.  That’s only one small part of the day.

Four years ago, a friend started asking for donations to pay for a full-time caregiver.                    Israel National Health Insurance will only help pay for this service for adults. Unfortunately, Ruchama’s family’s financial situation wasn’t strong before this and taking care of a fully handicapped child is extremely costly.

Please help us with your generous donations give Ruchama the life and dignity she deserves.