The capital city for the evacuees from the north and the south

The article was written in collaboration with the Jerusalem Municipality

From the moment of their arrival, the evacuees were embraced and embraced by both the municipal authorities and the residents of the city. At its peak, over 15,000 residents from the south and the north stayed in the city, who were forced to leave their homes and chose to come to Jerusalem. Upon the arrival of the evacuees in the city, and under the direction of the mayor, Moshe Leon, representatives from all the municipal departments were appointed to accompany and provide the guests with a variety of emotional tools alongside respite, employment, education, culture and leisure activities, and the municipal teams put together a daily schedule of activities for them.

Not "evacuees", residents!

"From the moment the evacuees arrived in the city, they received everything they needed from us," says the CEO of the Jerusalem Municipality, Itzik Larry. Starting with psychological assistance, it will include volunteering, providing basic equipment such as clothes, parking and laundry arrangements and respite activities in the fields of education, culture and sports. For us, everyone who came to the city, we treated him as if he was a resident of the city for all intents and purposes. The mayor conducts frequent tours of the hotels, to hear directly from the evacuees what is needed, and everything is answered."

Soon, the evacuated residents became an integral part of the city of Jerusalem. The municipality immediately established an educational system in the morning hours that operated in the hotels. This system gave the preschool children and the schools study sessions and enrichment as much as possible as well as the possibility to return to a certain routine. Later, dedicated schools were established for the evacuee communities. As the fighting dragged on, the evacuees were placed in the Jerusalem education system, as full-fledged students for all intents and purposes.

As of today, about 1,800 evacuees are staying in Jerusalem, most of them from the north and a minority from the south. Those staying are mostly in rented apartments around the city and some in hotels. In the past year, about 420 children were enrolled in the Jerusalem education system, who are integrated into about 40 educational institutions throughout the city. The children, from all age groups (kindergarten to high school) are integrated into the various educational frameworks that include: kindergartens, elementary schools, upper elementary schools, special education, special education. In the coming year, about 600 children from the north of various ages will study in the municipal system.

These students were absorbed in the various schools in the city and according to the worldview of the houses they came from. Thus, the students were absorbed in the general high schools, including the Hebrew Grammar School, Rene Kessin, Keshet, Lady Davis, the experimental schools, in the MMD education - licensed Talmud Torah, Ol'panat Tzvia, Alma Emunah, Evelina, etc., as well as in ultra-Orthodox settings. 

The place of the education teams was not neglected either. About 40 educators from Kiryat Shmona were integrated into the education system in Jerusalem. They were absorbed in some of the educational institutions where the children of the guests were placed, for example: Gonenim, Efrata, Noam, Dror, Beit Shinoch, Or Torah Girls, Evelina, Flech Benim and more.

In addition to the educational activity, the Jerusalem Municipality also provided a social therapeutic envelope adapted to the evacuated communities, while locating and providing a response to specific needs of evacuated residents, who are dealing with personal and family traumas and with anxieties.

Livelihood with dignity, and also culture

In order to give the residents an existential anchor, the Jerusalem Municipality took care not only of the issue of education, but also of the issue of employment, which is equally important. "Part of every person's daily routine is his work. To take that away from him - you have undermined his foundations," says Larry Itzik. "To strengthen them, we opened employment positions in hotels for the evacuees from the south and the north, where jobs were offered that would allow the residents who are expected to stay in the city, plan the near future and regain their self-identity. The evacuees are employed in businesses in the city and even in the municipality itself."

Alongside the employment centers, the municipality opened rights-extraction centers for the evacuees as well as public health centers, which provided health services for new mothers and their children, including developmental monitoring and assistance to the young families. In addition, the municipality acted among the seniors and special education children, who also received adapted frameworks and similar to the level of service provided to the city's residents.

And what about breaking a routine? That happened too. The Jerusalem Municipality worked to hold cultural, leisure and sports events for the evacuees. "A true Jerusalemite must get to know the city, for all the diverse sites it has, and for us, the residents of the north, while they are here, are Jerusalemites in every way. We opened the cultural institutions throughout the city to them and at no cost - museums, parks, the aquarium, the zoo, we held tours of the city , all in order to embrace them as strongly as possible to the pulsating Jerusalem heart and spirit," says Larry proudly.

With the arrival of summer, the municipality entered the places where the youths of Shlomi and Mekiryat Shmona are, while establishing physical spaces, which include mats and zola corners with food and board games. The professional teams operating in the hotels invest in making recreational, enrichment, leisure and employment activities accessible and as mentioned are in regular contact with the youth, dubbing them to speak, present and available for them.

For example, during one of the meetings, teenagers interested in literature were located. The municipal staff financed a literature kit for them, and the Ministry of Education helped finance a course to allow them to integrate into activities in the field. In addition, dozens of other youths were directed to employment that includes scholarships through the Youth Promotion Department of the Jerusalem Education Administration, in a variety of fields such as carpentry, telephone repairs, working on an agricultural farm, and more.

"We see the residents of the north who are in Jerusalem as residents of the city for all intents and purposes," concludes Larry. "Of course, we wish every day for the return of the abducted, for the recovery of the wounded, for the safety and success of the IDF soldiers and for the end of the war with us having the upper hand. Until it arrives, we are here for our brothers from the north and the south. We will continue to be here all the way, until the return of a safe routine and welcome and long-awaited peace."

An open heart, thinking outside the box and a solution to every need that arises

The mayor of Kiryat Shmona, Avihai Stern, talks about the reception of the city's residents in Jerusalem. "Residents from Kiryat Shmona arrived in Jerusalem, about a week after the outbreak of the "Iron Swords" war. Immediately after that, we opened the Kiryat Shmona emergency center in the city of Jerusalem, next to the municipality's emergency center. The professional staff from Kiryat Shmona were welcomed by members of the Jerusalem municipality From all areas - Passover, culture, community, operations, the youth authority, the education administration and more. It is important for me to say that the Jerusalem Municipality, in all its parts, is one of the strongest places we have reached. It's a place where we saw an open heart and a thought that goes beyond the box and everything, to find solutions for every need that arises."

The mayor details the ongoing work with the Jerusalem Municipality and its various administrations, such as the Education Administration. "In the city of Jerusalem, we do not work in a hybrid model - dedicated frameworks for the residents of Kiryat Shmona and integration in the educational institutions of the receiving city, but all the students are registered in the local educational institutions, with the exception of one daycare center that we opened. The Jerusalem Municipality, Manhai and the Ministry of Education are making great efforts to provide solutions to the education issue.

Ahead of the start of the school year, we are working in constant dialogue with the administration of education in the municipality and the Ministry of Education to refine the solutions provided to the residents of Kiryat Shmona, whether it is in changing placements, in transportation, and there as well, we receive full cooperation from all parties, for which we are very grateful and appreciative." 

One of the burning issues is the treatment of the evacuated residents. Stern, full of praise for the Jerusalem municipality, also in this matter. "Also on the issue of welfare, I have nothing but praise. At first a temporary framework was established, with the understanding that it was a matter of a few months, and then it changed. It is important for me to say that to this day, the Jerusalem Municipality works and works among the residents of Kiryat Shmona in hotels.

Unlike other cities, where the municipality of Kiryat Shmona provides a solution in the field of welfare, in Jerusalem we receive a solution from professional social workers from the municipality of Jerusalem. The social workers in the hotels become a source of urban information for the residents, and not only as a source of social support."

"We also feel the embrace from private individuals, business owners and associations who want to lend a hand and donate their time and money for the benefit of the residents of Kiryat Shmona in particular and the evacuees who stayed here," concludes Stern. "We feel the embrace, the inclusion and the understanding, from the person on the street to the officials of the municipality and the mayor, Moshe Leon. It is important for me to say that we have different challenges in front of the various authorities, but in terms of working with the Jerusalem Municipality - we have nothing to say but a big thank you and heartfelt appreciation ".

Gabi Naaman, head of the Shlomi Council, also points out to praise the actions of the city of Jerusalem for the benefit of the residents of Shlomi who are in the city. "On behalf of the residents of Shlomi, we would like to thank the Jerusalem municipality and its leader, my friend Moshe Leon. With the government's decision to evacuate the settlement of Shlomi following the Iron Swords War and the threat to the safety of the residents of the settlement, about a third of the residents of Shlomi evacuated to Jerusalem.

The people of the city, the elected officials and the employees of the municipality, as well as the hotel employees, received the people of Shlomi with a beautiful hospitality and a big hug. The people of the municipality, led by the mayor, worked to make the evacuation easier for the evacuees, which started in the hotels and continued when some of the residents rented houses in Jerusalem, far from the natural environment and home. 

The evacuation was a complex event and it was a real difficulty to provide the residents with all their needs, starting with physical conditions and then also taking care of their mental and social well-being by participating in cultural and leisure events," continues Naaman. "The residents of the city of Jerusalem welcomed us with a bright face, an open heart and a willing soul and acted with generosity and patience Ruach in order to help the residents of Shlomi get through this difficult period in the easiest way possible."

Naaman expresses hope that very soon, the residents of Jerusalem will be able to come and stay, too, in Shlomi Hifa. "Let us all, the residents of Shlomi and the residents of Jerusalem, wish for the speedy return of our abductees and the return of peace and tranquility to our northern border and for the day when the residents of Jerusalem can come and enjoy Shlomi's special family atmosphere."

The article was written in collaboration with the Jerusalem Municipality