After Itai graduated from high school, he tried to volunteer for national service but was not accepted in several places. He almost gave up. After sitting idly at home for a long time, he was referred to Bayit Cham.
The wonderful, expert Irit, our vocational coach in the southern region, has gone through an amazing process with him… Itai started working at the Rami Levy supermarket. Despite the physical challenges, he learned how to conduct himself in the work world. He acquired tools and skills with lots of appreciation and camaraderie from his co-workers.
Recently, after a year at the job, Itai felt ripe to move forward and actualize his high abilities. So Irit turned to Fattal Hotels who hired Itai with open arms to work in their customer service department ♥ ️ Itai is very excited and is already waiting to find you the best rooms and arrange a perfect vacation for you… ?
Itai, we are so proud of you and excited about your determination and the hard work that brings you to such amazing achievements! ?
Thanks to Irit for the wonderful work as always, and to our dear corporate partners, Rami Levy and Fattal Hotels, who always provide equal opportunity.

Moshe, 32, an energetic, intelligent young man, married for about a year, has been working for the past 4 years greeting visitors at Yad Vashem and providing them with initial guidance. He recently started looking for a job in high-tech because he will soon be completing a cyber course which he has been studying for the past 16 months with great success.
Moshe did not always have the easiest life. He claims that in the past, he had no rest neither by day nor by night, depending on the episode of mania or depression that alternated frequently and affected his alertness. Life was neither stable nor possible. To deal with the difficulty, the pain and the frustration, he also drank and smoked substances.
That’s the state he was in when he arrived at Bayit Cham about 7 years ago. Eli, his vocational coach, welcomed him. Moshe was placed at a job as a waiter. He says that Eli gave him the option to do only what he could: “Just show up at work. I will make sure to talk to your boss, arrange flexible hours for you, take care of your salary and everything you need.” And for two years Moshe came, sometimes unfocused and challenged but with a strong determination to work. Eli took care of everything, supported him, encouraged him and ensured his rights vis-à-vis his employer, something that Moshe was unable to do for himself at the time. Moshe shares with appreciation that he once came to a meeting with Eli and “I did not treat him well … A week later I came again and Eli accepted me. Unconditionally.”
At some point, the job with the caterer was over and Moshe took advantage of his energies and started employment at a furniture company that works with 500 offices, in delivery, installation and maintenance of office furniture. During this time, due to Moshe’s personal reasons which Bayit Cham responded to, he switched to a different Bayit Cham coach, Dikla. Dikla assisted Moshe in submitting important bureaucratic applications for his professional future and walked him through the process with the National Insurance Institute’s Rehabilitation Department to obtain funding for his studies.
The big breakthrough, according to Moshe, occurred when he decided 4 years ago to stop drinking and smoking. Moshe decided to take matters into his own hands and became a person who takes better care of himself, notices what he is doing, sets goals for himself and is focused on achieving them. Since then, his career took off and soared. That’s when Moshe landed his current job at Yad Vashem and eventually was accepted to study at HackerU, where he has persistently applied himself for the past year and four months.
Today, Moshe is nearing graduation, preparing for his final exams and has already started looking for a job in high-tech. Moshe says that the support he receives from his current vocational coach, Bracha, helps him focus, go job hunting, gain tools how to conduct himself, prepare for job interviews and more.
Moshe’s message to others in recovery is: “Do only what you can and use what you have. The tendency of people with mental health challenges is always to look at the half-empty glass and the difficulties. You should look at the half-full glass and use it. At the beginning of my journey in rehabilitation, I knew I had a great desire to work and energy and that’s what I used. Bayit Cham helped with everything else … Baruch Hashem for Bayit Cham.”
Moshe also wanted to thank his amazing wife. “She deserves credit for every inch of progress I make.”
You melted our hearts totally?.
You’re a king? !!! ?
Both for the amazing journey and for opening up and sharing it – self-confidence can break through every prejudice and stigma?

One of our vocational rehab service recipients, a person with high-functioning autism, worked for about ten years as a security guard. Throughout this long period, he did not give up on his big dream – to work for a high-tech company in the field in which he acquired professional certification.
Ten years of dreaming, determination, and hope – paid off ?. With the support of his terrific vocational coach, he applied for and landed a full-time job at Origin GPS. He has been working there for a month, loves the job and is flying high. His employer also discovered that it was worthwhile to have him on the team – a hard-working, dedicated and punctual worker. A real win-win situation. It’s wonderful that there are those who dream and others who believe in the dream and help make it come true.
We are proud of you ?

Yossi, a charming and talented young man, started Bayit Cham’s supported employment program about 5 years ago.
He suffered from severe anxiety, low self-esteem and social phobia that made it difficult for him to be in the company of people. Due to his phobias, he began transitional employment at a wedding hall setting tables. His vocational coach met with him daily, encouraged and supported him, and strengthened his employment skills.
After a few months, the director of supported employment encouraged Yossi to move ahead to a position that better suited his advanced skills. Yossi, of course, was very anxious and resisted the idea. His vocational coach assured him that he would not be alone – she would help him with anything he needed. Yossi decided to trust her and moved on to work as a cashier. Another step along the road to recovery…
The coach kept her word and came to the store every single day. She talked to Yossi, supported him and gave him feedback on his successes. Yossi recounts how much her presence instilled in him confidence, how it helped him to talk about the difficulty and about his employer. Slowly he was able to calm down.
Yossi worked well and once again, after only a few months, he was offered a new opportunity. His employer had just opened a large, new branch in the city and asked Yossi to manage the store! This entailed arriving at 6.30 in the morning, opening the store, being in charge of the finances, suppliers, orders, goods, customers, etc. – all alone!!!
Can you guess how Yossi reacted ??
The biggest fear was being on his own… “And what if I don’t feel well??”
But his employer insisted that he was the man for the job and his coach provided support, encouragement and coping skills. In the end, he agreed! Now Yossi arrives at the branch every morning with the first bus, opens, organizes, manages and does unparalleled work for over 3 years?
Today his coach’s support is more sporadic but he continues to meet with her when needed to work out his difficulties. For example, with the outbreak of corona, anxieties resurfaced and increased significantly, so once again, the support was intense. His coach helped him normalize his fears and reduce anxiety; Yossi continued to function excellently just as he is capable of doing… but that’s not all!
As Yossi’s recovery process progressed, in the past year he began to talk about his desire to marry and start a family, something that had not occurred to him before because he was not emotionally ready for it. Our amazing coach directed him to the relevant resources, Yossi began dating for marriage and… got married 5 months ago! ? Of course, his coordinator also came to this very exciting wedding?
In a conversation with his coach prior to the wedding, Yossi suggested having the wedding on Zoom? (social phobia and all that…) but she reported that he bravely withstood the challenge throughout the entire affair with much emotion and heroism. It was an amazing event.
These days Yossi is learning to integrate marriage and work and has begun the process of getting a driver’s license, studiously preparing for his written exam. He continues to be in touch with his vocational coach for emotional support.
His coach sums up:
“With belief in another person’s capabilities, anyone can get to where they want to go! With the right guidance and support, it is definitely possible! In supporting clients, I really like to use a meaningful tool – ‘learning from success’.”

“My name is Niv, I’m 23 years old and I live with my parents. I was born with PDD-NOS – a light case of autism, and without an outer left ear, so I can only hear with my right ear.
I have completed three and a half years of full voluntary military service. I served in the elite Duvdevan unit as a cook. I enjoyed every minute of it and the soldiers enjoyed me… I like to cook – it’s therapeutic for me?
Today, with the support and guidance of Bayit Cham, I have been working for half a year at “Eretz Bereshit” as a sous chef – the chef’s right-hand man ? I also feed the goats every morning before I start working in the kitchen ?
The bosses, the chef and the entire staff are wonderful people.
Once a week or two, Yehuda (a top-notch vocational coach at Bayit Cham) comes to see me. We sit and talk. I tell him about what I’m going through and we talk and see how we can solve the problem. Sometimes it’s hard for me to understand situations, such as pressure that at times I don’t feel understood.
But without a doubt, from a young age I showed my parents that I know how to be independent. It’s really not self-understood.
Besides, from a young age I have always loved music. I began playing guitar when I was 16, writing and composing.
My dream is to learn more cooking and music.
It is important to me, as a person with disabilities, to show everyone that the sky’s the limit and that everyone should see that we, the “different” population, can also find a job and make a respectable living.”

Is there anything more exciting than that?! We’ve been in love with Niv for a long time…
Niv, you are a role model‼️ – in motivation, drive, active doing and smiling, inside and out! We have no doubt that you will go far and we wish you much success.