Success Stories
Thursday, 01 May 2014 12:30

Um Mohammed al-Bitar, middle-aged mother of seven, and the wife of a prisoner within the Israeli detention system, Hebron

Due to her illness, Umm Mohammed lost her leg and became unable to neither fulfill her daily duties nor take care of herself. Sometimes she had to crawl, other times she arranged things near her. She searched for organizations to support the costs of having an artificial limb but she failed. Until a friend of hers informed her about the East Jerusalem YMCA –Rehabilitation Program who provide services to people with disabilities.

By the time she contacted the Program, a counselor visited her promptly to evaluate her needs and introduce her to the work and services of the Program. The counselor kept on visiting her on a weekly basis to provide her with psychosocial counseling services to help her get out of her isolation. During the same time, the Program supported her in getting the artificial limb and made some adaptations to her house to make it accessible to her new situation. Handrails were added to lean on when using the stairs and others were added in the bathroom to support her when showering. Um Mohammed tried to benefit from her expertise in the treatment of burns to support her financially, but soon began planning to establish her own sewing project to improve her situation further.

The East Jerusalem YMCA - Rehabilitation Program helped her find inner peace and tranquility as she regained her self-confidence and improved her abilities. It remains in her memory forever, the first place she visited after having the artificial limb, which was her youngest daughter's school where she reached for her child walking on her two feet and the little child called for her teacher and friends telling them: "My mother can walk on her feet just like anyone else and can hold me".

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