An emotional appeal from the director of an Emunah project in Israel helped British Emunah to raise £200,000 from a dinner and musical soiree at London's Guildhall.
Shlomo Kessel, director of the Sarah Herzog Centre in Afula, told the 300 guests about the challenges of looking after nearly 200 children, many who had come to the home in heart-breaking circumstances.
"They are angry, feeling pain and rejection, abandoned like unwanted clothing. One father brought his five children to us, saying: 'I don't want a family.' Others, four beautiful children, had to be removed from their homes due to horrific mistreatment.
"Thanks to the high calibre of our professional staff, we can care for them and it is our privilege to look after them. They are also tutored in basic skills - reading, writing and arithmetic. Some had not been to school regularly for years."
He was "a voice for the children who need so many things that my children take for granted. For example, we need a clothing budget, so they look nice and can feel good about themselves, not like poor children. It's a costly business and the Israeli government cannot provide the necessary funds."
Emunah centre deals with heart-rending cases
Another speaker was Nathan Weinstein, 17, who volunteered at the Afula home during a Bnei Akiva scheme.
The entertainment was from opera singer Yotam Cohen and the Master Quartet and violinist Liam Shinar, Emunah's Young Musician of the Year.
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