『ミルトス』２０２１年２月号に掲載されました。
カテゴリー: イスラエル社会
Interview with Rabbi Kalman Samuels
By Kinue Tokudome
Rabbi Kalman Samuels is the Founder and President of Shalva, the Israel Association for the Care and Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities.
The Japanese version of this article was published in the February 2021 issue of “Myrtos” magazine in Japan.
障がい者支援施設「シャルヴァ」 の夢: カルマン・サミュエルズ
『みるとす』２０２１年２月号
Shalva National Center in Jerusalem
Tokudome: First of all, thank you very much for allowing me to translate your beautiful and inspirational memoir, Dreams Never Dreamed.
The book contains so many moving episodes—your awakening to Judaism while traveling to Israel as a college student from a secular family in Vancouver, marrying a very religious 18-year-old daughter of a Holocaust survivor, having your healthy 11-month-old son, Yossi, lose his vision and hearing because of faulty vaccination, your struggle to find a way to help Yossi, seeing the breakthrough in Yossi’s ability to communicate, the legal fight against those who were responsible for Yossi’s injury, opening and expanding of Shalva in spite of many obstacles along the way, being blessed with generous donors, and overseeing Shalva that has become a world-renowned center for children with disabilities and their families based on the philosophy of inclusion.
What kind of experience was it for you to write this book, revisiting all these episodes over the years, some of which were very painful?
Samuels: Several years after Yossi was injured, I found myself living in New York with a family of very young children and working long hours in the computer field to make a living. My goal was to help my dear wife Malki with anything and everything I could do to ease her physical and emotional burdens. That included caring for the children before I left for the hour-long subway trip from Brooklyn to Manhattan each morning, and upon returning after 6 PM, spending time with each child and helping to put them to sleep. After that, I required time to study and enhance my professional computer knowledge.
Malki had enormous pressure and responsibilities and I did not wish to add to her burdens with my thoughts and concerns. So I began recording those thoughts and feelings in a late night diary, and in some way this was my therapy. As Shalva developed I found myself sharing many of the stories with friends and donors and realized that they found them to be of great interest and most meaningful.
I finally decided to share the stories behind the Shalva story in an organized manner in book form. It was a most challenging and trying experience to relive it all in great detail and organize it on paper but I am pleased that I wrote it.
Courtesy of Shalva
Tokudome: Those who read this book find out that the real driving force behind Shalva is Malki, your wife. Was she also involved in the writing process for this book?
Samuels: Malki has always wanted to stay under the radar, far from the public eye. My desire to write a book was extremely difficult for her because clearly, I would have to write about her, but she recognized how important it was for me and allowed me to write it.
I consulted with her on delicate topics but she has not read the book and probably never will.
Dreams Never Dreamed
この本は、昨年エルサレムに訪問しインタビューさせて頂いたカルマン・サミュエルズ師が、世界最大級の障がい児施設 Shalva を開設するまでの体験を綴った著書です。
以下は、昨年インタビューを基に書いた記事
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障がい児施設 Shalva を訪ねて
徳留絹枝
今年５月、テルアビブで開催された国際歌謡コンテスト「ユーロビジョン」で、障がいを持つ若者で構成された Shalva Band が世界中の人々を感激させた。（コンテストを勝ち抜いていたが、リハーサルが安息日にかかり辞退。セミファイナルに特別出演した。）
Shalva Band は、エルサレムにある障がい児施設 Shalva のミュージックセラピーの一環として結成された。今ではイスラエル国内はもちろん、世界の場で演奏する人気グループに成長した。Shalvaは、ヘブライ語で「心の平安」を意味する。
1990年、たった６人の障がい児のためにスタートした Shalva は、今や、知的・身体障がいを持つゼロ歳児から成人まで二千人に、多岐にわたるサービスを提供する世界最大の施設になった。親を対象としたプログラムもあり、障がいを持って生まれた子供の育児に戸惑う親に希望を与えることを目指す。幼稚園プログラムは、教育者・ソーシャルワーカー・セラピストが一緒に作り上げるクラスで、健常児との交流もある。学童児の放課後リハビリ・レクリエーションクラスは、スポーツ・ドラマ・アート・音楽・水泳など、施設内のコートやプールを利用してのプログラムだ。そして青少年に達した者には、調理師などへの職業訓練を提供する。（訪問時に私がお茶を頂いた喫茶店でも卒業生が働いていた。）各種セラピーは、最新の学術的成果を取り入れた内容で、研究者にとってもフィールドワークの場になっているという。
Shalva 設立者のカルマン・サミュエルズ師にお話しを伺った。
私はカナダのバンクーバーで生まれました。ユダヤ系ですが、宗教はそれほど身近に感じずに育ちました。1970年、大学１年を終えた段階で、フランスで哲学を学ぶために留学することになりました。途中イスラエルに寄ってみてはという母の勧めで、夏休みの２週間をイスラエルで過ごすことにしました。そして私はフランスへは行かず、それどころかカナダにも帰らなかったんです。イスラエル滞在中に訪れたキブツやそこで出会ったラビに大きな影響を受け、結局7年間イスラエルで学び、ラビになりました。その間妻となる女性と出会い、結婚しました。
私たちの二人めの子供のヨシは、11カ月の時に受けた予防接種に問題があり、視力と聴力を完全に失ってしまいました。知人の多くが、施設に預けてはと助言してくれましたが、妻と私はこの子を自宅で世話すると決心しました。
Israel: Not just a start-up nation
By Kinue Tokudome
The Japanese version of this article appeared on Ronza on Nov. 13.
Israel has been called a “start-up nation” due to its advancement in many areas of technology. Over the past few years, the economic exchanges between Japan and Israel have seen rapid growth. On the diplomatic side also, the relationship has deepened since Prime Minister Abe and Prime Minister Netanyahu made mutual visits, and security cooperation has progressed. As the number of Israeli tourists visiting Japan is increasing, the exchange between the two countries is expanding as never before. ElAl’s direct flights between Tokyo and Tel Aviv from March next year will surely accelerate this trend.
Meanwhile, news coverage on Israel in Japan seems to have converged into only two areas, its relations with the Palestinians and its high-tech industry. As a result, Japanese people do not have an accurate picture of Israeli society. The task of rectifying this situation cannot be done overnight. But for the past two years, I have been visiting Israel and interviewing people, whose stories I believed would help such a task.
Here are two organizations I visited last September.
Shalva
In May of this year, the international song contest “Eurovision” was held in Tel Aviv and the Shalva Band, made up of young people with disabilities, inspired people around the world.
Shalva Band was formed as part of the music therapy at Shalva, a facility for children with disabilities in Jerusalem. It has grown to be a popular music band that performs not only in Israel but worldwide. Shalva means “Peace of Mind” in Hebrew.
Shalva, which started with only six children with disabilities in 1990, is now the world’s largest facility offering an all-encompassing range of services to 2,000 children with disabilities from infancy to adulthood and their families.
An early intervention program for babies and their mothers also aims to give parents who struggle with raising a child with disabilities hope. Day Care and Preschools offer an enriching curriculum created by educators, social workers, and therapists that includes interaction with mainstream children. In the after-school program, children enjoy daily therapy-oriented activities like sports, drama, arts, music, and swimming. Young adults have the opportunity to receive vocational training.
Here is my interview with Rabbi Kalman Samuels, the founder of Shalva.
“Our second child, Yossi, became blind and deaf when he was 11 months old after he received a vaccination, which had a problem. Some of our friends advised us that we should put Yossi in an institution. We were determined to raise him at home. But we could not communicate with Yossi, and my wife often cried at night.
And a miracle happened when Yossi was eight years old. A special therapist finger-spelled into the palm of his hand the five symbols for the Hebrew word for table, and he suddenly understood that meant this object. Just like Hellen Keller understood water and its name.
All over sudden, his world opened up. Other teachers taught him subjects, and in two years, he was a brilliant child who can learn.
And then my wife sat me down and said, ‘It’s payback time. I promised to God if he could help Yossi, I would devote the rest of my life to helping other mothers.’
We rented an apartment and started an after-school class for six children with disabilities. Many parents of children with disabilities heard about our activities and came one after another, so we rented an apartment next door and the program expanded. Eventually, it served 400 children.
In 2005, the Israeli government came to me to consult. They said that the government will provide 7 acres (60% of the size of Tokyo Dome) of land and that they wanted us to provide our programs to more children. So, we decided to work on a new Shalva center. The government paid for some construction, but the rest of the money had to be raised.
What my wife and I were aiming for was the concept of inclusion. Shalva’s services are basically provided free of charge on a first-come, first-served basis. And there is no discrimination based on race, religion, family’s economic status. Wealthy families can voluntarily donate but their children do not receive special treatment.
Shalva now has 400 employees and is the largest of its kind in the world. Every year 50,000 visitors come from around the world.
Our son Yoshi is 43 years old and works independently at a computer-related company.”
Mr. Yossi Samuels visiting President Bush and Mrs. Bush
(Photo courtesy: Rabbi Kalman Samuels)
The world’s Jewish community supported rabbi Samuels and his wife’s dream. Currently, there are support organizations of Shalva across the globe, making many of their activities possible.
The Shalva Center I visited was such a happy place, with sunlight coming through from the front window. It incorporated many ideas of Mrs. Samuels. I learned that there are many couples who were married while working at this Center together.
Shalva Center Rabbi Samuels and author
Shalva website
Save a Child’s Heart
Dr. Ami Cohen was a doctor with the US Army. When he was stationed in South Korea and Saudi Arabia, he performed pediatric cardiac surgeries. Dr. Cohen immigrated to Israel in 1992. He performed surgery on an Ethiopian child at the request of his Ethiopian doctor friend. Realizing that some African countries lacked advanced medical facilities and trained doctors, he established “Save a Child’s Heart” in 1995.
The Wolfson Medical Center outside Tel Aviv, where Dr. Cohen served as the director of the department of cardiology, became the receiving hospital for this program. Volunteer doctors started to provide pediatric cardiac surgeries to children of Africa, free of charge, airfare, and boarding. As their activities became widely known donations were coming in, and the program was expanding.
Dr. Ami Cohen
(photo courtesy: Save a Child’s Heart)
Dr. Cohen died of altitude sickness while climbing Kilimanjaro in 2001. Continuation of Save a Child’s Heart was in danger. But the people who had been inspired by Dr. Cohen continued the program and made it even bigger. Just recently, they achieved a record of providing cardiac surgeries to 5,000 children from 60 countries. Half of them are Palestinian children in the West Bank and Gaza. In addition, 120 doctors and nurses have been invited to Israel from countries such as those in Africa to receive medical training.
I visited the Wolfson Medical Center about 10 minutes south of Tel Aviv by train. Ms. Tamar Shapira, a spokesperson for Save a Child’s Heart, gave me a tour of the pediatric cardiac surgery department and introduced me to the people there.
Children who just undergone cardiac surgery spend the first two days in ICU. A child from Ethiopia, a Palestinian child, and an Israeli child who has undergone surgery as a regular patient were being taken care of by the same doctor/nurse group in the ICU. Ms. Shapira explained, “Any child from any background is taken care of in the same way.”
It was the day when the children who recovered from surgery were receiving a weekly check-up. I met a boy and his mother from an African country. We couldn’t communicate, but I was able to sense her deep appreciation for this program.
I met a female doctor from Tanzania who was checking children. She must be an elite in her home country. She spoke about Save a Child ‘s Heart in fluent English.
“What is unique about this program is that you can learn about the entire process, from pre-treatment diagnosis to post-surgery progress. I would like to bring the knowledge and skills I have gained here to Tanzania and save more children in my home country.”
Next, Ms. Shapira took me to the dormitory in the nearby residential area. Here, pre- and post-surgery children and their mothers live for a few months. Some mothers never used modern kitchen appliances in their home country, but there was a lady who is ready to help them. The courtyard is a playground, where fully recovered children are having fun. Realizing that these children might not have been saved without Save a Child’s Heart, I was deeply moved by watching these children.
(Photo Courtesy: Save a Child’s Heart)
After visiting the hospital and the dormitory, I interviewed Mr. Simon Fisher, Executive Director of Save a Child’s Heart. When I asked what I wanted to know the most – what is the driving force behind this program, Mr. Fischer explained.
“Israel is a young country. Our pioneers worked hard to create this country over the decades. As for medical technology, until the end of the 1970s, Israeli doctors could not save children with difficult conditions such as heart disease. It was in the late 80s that Israeli doctors reached the Western countries’ level, after bringing back knowledge and experiences back from their study in those countries. Israeli doctors remember those days. In that sense, Israeli doctors are a little different from doctors in advanced countries in the West or Japan that have a long history of medical science.
I think that gives Israeli doctors a sense of responsibility to help children in countries that cannot be saved with the latest medical technology and to help medical professionals in those countries gain knowledge and experiences.”
Save a Child’s Heart received last year’s United Nations’ Population Award. Also, the International Pediatric Cardiac Center & Children’s Hospital will be opened next year in the Wolfson Medical Center. A reunion of former patients who have undergone heart surgery by this program will soon be held. It must be an inspiring gathering.
Save a Child’s Heart website
At the time of writing this article, Israel is not able to form a government after two elections. But as these organizations show, there are people in Israel, with only one-fourteenth of Japan’s population, who are doing internationally-acclaimed works following their deep convictions. I hope that the Japanese people will learn more about this aspect of the Israeli society as Japan-Israel exchange deepens.