Support Families with Special Needs in Palestine

October Report for  Support Families with Special Needs in Palestine

Thanks to the family support group you have funded, the families of our residents have been able to talk with someone who truly understands the challenges of:

     Being elderly with a bad back, having to change, and frequently reposition your son who is bigger than you are.

     How to comfort your young daughter when neighborhood kids tease her about her sister who sits on the porch, rocking incessantly, occasionally yelling, but unable to speak.

     Finding new ways to prepare soft food, and position your sister so she can eat it without choking

     Creating games and activities that your son can do in a wheelchair in the sitting room because the stairs make it too difficult to take him outdoors regularly.

     Convincing your severely developmentally delayed daughters always to wear masks when they go out near people.

     Coping with your child’s depression as he misses his friends, activities and the staff at the Homes.

     In addition, struggling with your own fears of the virus attacking your family, the breadwinner’s loss of income, and your own exhaustion.

Without the friendship of each other which group members have established , and the frequent support of our social worker and matron on What’sApp calls, this awful time of Covid-19 would be even worse.

Each member of the group, their famiies, and our staff want you to know how much you have helped them.

In these times of Covid, the family support group created with gifts from GlobalGiving Donors has been indespensable to our families by providing spport and breaking their senses of isolation and being overwhelmed.

As the tight closures were beginning in Mid-March, and people were ordered to shelter in place rater than go to their jobs, family members of 2/3 of our residents chose to use the opportunity to have them home and celebrate Ramadan with them for the first time for many years.  The expectation was that in May, life would 'return to normal' and the residents would return.

Sadly, the virus is still raging, cities locked down at times, and the Homes have maintained their strict quarantine despite enomous pressure from the families, a few of whose members have managed to return to employment

The lifeline for a number of these families has been the check-ins from our acting director and social worker (co-leaders of the group) and communication  between families--generallly by phone, in one-on one calls to share support and ideas on how to manage the challenges of caring for their disabled loved one. Had the group not been formed, it is highly unlikely that the families would have felt comfortable reaching out to one another!!

 Since it is sadly obvious that Covid-19 is not leaving soon, the Homes will be formalizing the parents' group meetings into smaller groups (because of frequent unreliability of the the internet there) via WhatsApp.

The support by the group that you provided has been essential, especially for those families who have not had their loved one at home for more than a few days for many years--if ever!

If you can, please continue to support us and keep these groups going.

On behalf of all at the Homes, our deepest thanks.  

Please stay safe!

Blessings!!

Liz

The Four Homes of Mercy

Family Support Groups Program

Report / February 2020

Building on the success achieved during the first year of the Family Support Groups program implemented by the Four Homes of Mercy (FHOM), and the desire of more families to join the program, a preparatory meeting will be organized for the members of the first group with new families, where every person has the chance to share his/her experience being part of the group and the benefits each received by the building and strengthening of bonds between families and the residents and staff of the FHOM. 

The engagement and involvement of new families will sustain the program and extend the support to new members who will also benefit from exchanging and sharing their concerns, needs, and dreams with each other.  The program will provide the members with needed psycho-social support and enable them to be more comfortable on spreading the realities and rights of those with special needs. 

        During this year the project  for this new group is expected to continue focusing on the following aspects:

• Creating opportunities to socialize and building friendships – where families are encouraged to build strong friendships and social relations to share their concerns, challenges, and experiences.
• Providing a listening ear – where families are encouraged to create positive environment to fully enjoy social support and the feeling being heard, understood, and accepted.
• Providing information, advice, and emotional and social support – where families are encouraged to create a caring environment where every member is able to question, learn and make important decisions concerning the services provided to their loved ones.
• Providing a regular meeting place –
• Organizing activities such as joint excursions and family days out – where families are encouraged to spend joyful times communicating with their loved ones and each other and thereby strengthening their relationships.

I  am so glad my child is now safe and getting good care,

Leila the mother of Kareem shared her hesitancy in joining the group.  After a couple of sessions, she was able to share her experience with having her child  served by different organizations before  bringing him to the Homes. She said “just now, when Kareem is in the Homes I feel that my child is safe”. She also said “now I will surely  continue to be an active member of the program”.

• PDF Report (PDF)
  

                                          The Friends of the Four Homes of Mercy

                                                    10455 Torre Avenue

                                                   Cupertino, CA. 95014

                                             Family Support Groups Program

                                                   Report / November 2019

 Thanks to you, wonderful donors, the initial Family Support Group for the families of 10 residents was all to reach its goals of reducing isolation and increasing the contact between families, their resident, and the staff.

     Meeting monthly, with the assistance of our matron and social worker, the participants were able to create and maintain strong bonds with one another which they sustained via WhatsApp between meeting times.  The transformation of the family members was dramatic!  Involvement with their resident on-site, and short home visits increased significantly. Each person felt he or she had a better understanding of the treatment plan for their loved one, and a greater connection to the staff.  

      For some participants, assistance with the cost of transportation was essential to help them to achieve their long-held dream more frequent contact and with people who truly understand their situation, and with their loved one.

     We now have other families eager to have such a group, and hope, finances permitting, to start the next one(s) in January.

• Creating opportunities to socialize and building friendships – families moved on in building close friendships and started to invite new members to join the group, where they have the chance to share their concerns, challenges, and experiences. They emphasized on the need to keep regular meetings and to strengthen communication between each other.
• Providing a listening ear – families enjoyed the chance not only to be heard, but also to hear each other while expressing their feelings, needs, and concerns. Being in such a loving environment enabled families to feel that they are more socially supported and accepted by friends who are ready to listen and understand their worries and fears.
• Providing information, advice, and emotional and social support – being able to learn and to be part in making decisions concerning their loved ones is of great importance for families and a valuable chance to get guidance on ways to address their concerns and implement their experiences. This caring environment is able to provide families with strong emotional support.
• Providing a regular meeting place – the family support program provides families who come from different parts of Palestine with a regular place to meet and organize joint activities families; this is one of the factors that encouraged families to invite new members to join the group.
• Organizing activities such as joint excursions and family days out – families actively joined a number of activities, where they were able to strengthen communication, build relations, and enjoy entertainment activities.