Empathy Retreat Letter from Amy Eini, Founder High on energy and excitement, Brenda and I received our guests at 14:00 pm on Sept 22nd. We gathered in the shade of the pine trees by the Dalia Guest Houses, to give participants a quick background about the Empathy Fund and the plans for the next two days. It was lovely to finally match the faces to the voices we had been speaking to on the phone over the past few weeks. My worries about the logistics and details began to melt away as I saw how much pleasure we were able to offer our guests. A distraction from the daily struggle with their illness, an escape from the hospital environment in order to be completely pampered in the pastoral surroundings of Kibbutz Dalia was just what they needed – both for the patients and their spouses. 14 couples enjoyed everything we had to offer, from meditative activities to delicious food, to fun, ice-breaking drumming entertainment in the evening. The support groups for both the patients and the caregivers offered everyone a chance to discuss and share. The emotional bonds between us all were tied within a short time, due to the intensity of the experience. The feedback was excellent and I want to thank everyone involved in making this first Empathy Retreat a success. I look forward to the next one, hopefully early next year. Amy Eini
Letter from Brenda, Program Coordinator My name is Brenda Sharon. I have been living on kibbutz Alonim for the last 30 years. I am originally from South Africa and lived in England for 5 years before making Aliya to Israel. I am a widow. My late husband, Amos, fell ill with cancer in April 2006 at the age of 55 and passed away in November 2007. My children and I took care of Amos at home and I felt very confident with my decision to have him at home to the very end. This was made possible with the help of home hospice. After taking care of a terminally ill cancer patient at home I felt that I had a lot to give to other families going through the same experiences. I felt that I had lots to give from my very being and from my acquaintance with cancer. AND then I met Amy with the help of a cousin to whom I had told of my desire to volunteer to help other families going through the cancer experience. From my first conversation with Amy we clicked. I appreciated her ideas. I feel that we compliment each other, Amy with her dreams and me with my organizational abilities. We started organizing our first retreat which took place in September this year. For two months the e-mails raced between us, with meetings taking place here and there until we completed our programme for the retreat and, in my opinion, it was a good and almost perfect programme. According to the participants in the retreat, the programme was fantastic and during the two days, spirits were high. I, of course, found myself identifying with the care givers, and watching them enjoying the retreat, releasing themselves from caring for the cancer patients, made me feel so good. Both the patients and their care givers took time out from the cancer, from their worries, from their daily commitments. After such an experience, I have even a greater desire to create more and more retreats for many more couples. I am extremely grateful to all the participants in our first retreat. Their participation gave me the possibility to give and, by giving, I received so much in return. |
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