Great in Uniform - Special ed teens in Israeli army

Sanguine

Tue, May 20 2014, 2:35 am

Brought tears to my eyes

First of all, I know a few regular boys who couldn't go to the army when their friends did (allergic to bee stings, diabetes...) and it was so hard for them to suddenly be different from all their friends whose lives revolved around army service then and it goes on for years.

But that's not what this is. For the past four years 2 of my kids have been volunteering in an organization for kids with cerebral palsy. CP can affect a person at different levels. I've met a bunch of these kids (they've even come to us for Shabbat). Some of them are so close to regular kids (some even go to regular schools), but not quite. They never really fit in to the Chevra. Every little accomplishment is so major for them. Being in the army would be such a major accomplishment. They would be doing what every other 18 year old in the country is doing and have the pride of "giving" instead of only "taking" as they get older. A great step in growing up

DrMom

Tue, May 20 2014, 2:49 am

Sanguine wrote:

They would be doing what every other 18 year old in the country is doing and have the pride of "giving" instead of only "taking" as they get older. A great step in growing up

This.