Sometimes there are mitzvah opportunities that you just cannot ignore even if you are on vacation. Such was Zahava’s story. A single Ethiopian mother of two teenage sons, Zahava currently works as a warehouseman in a Netanya department store.

Life for Zahava has never been easy. She made aliyah with some family friends when she was about 12 years old. She was bright,finished her high school requirements and was offered scholarships to pursue a professional degree but her husband (she was married at this point) refused to allow her to do this. Eventually he became abusive and she and her young sons were forced to flee to a Haifa shelter for abused women. In time Zahava managed to find work and a small apartment, raising her children on her own.

Today Zahava has been offered a full scholarship to nursing school; a profession she always wanted to pursue since her earlier work in a nursing home. Fiercely independent, Zahava knows that without some help she could never take advantage of this opportunity to advance herself and improve her life and the lives of her sons.

The scholarship will take care of the full two years of school but funds for rent and other living expenses are also needed if this was to happen. When our friends at the Forgotten People Fund approached us about helping there was never any hesitation on our part. Here was an opportunity to offer a bright and highly motivated woman the chance to gain a profession and become truly self-sufficient.

With the help of several Good People Fund donors, within two days funds were raised to cover Zahava’s expenses for the full two years of school. We could not be happier.