TORONTO — Canadian Friends of AKIM Israel is gearing up for a series of events next week with former Israeli navy chief, ex-Shin Bet chief and former member of Knesset Ami Ayalon, left.
But it’s Ayalon’s current role as chair of AKIM Israel – National Association for the Habilitation of the Mentally Handicapped in Israel, that is of particular interest to the Toronto-based group.
AKIM was founded in 1951 in Israel by the parents of an intellectually challenged son. It’s the largest Israeli organization for people with intellectual disabilities, said Diane Richler, event chair for Ayalon’s visit.
The organization provides a range of services, including kindergartens and nurseries, after-school activities, group homes, job training, recreational programs and support to families throughout Israel.
Torontonians Olga and Alex Eisen, who have an intellectually challenged son, started Canadian Friends of AKIM in 1962, following their first trip to Israel, where they visited a weaving workshop run by AKIM.
At the time, Alex, now president of the Canadian group, belonged to a bowling league that had raised $1,000 for charity, but hadn’t yet allocated the money.
The cause was “very close to my heart,” recalls Olga. Within 10 days of the Eisens’ return home, she and some friends had organized a tea, which raised $3,000 for AKIM.
Now, she said, the original organizers are aging, and are hoping to breathe new life into the group here – one of 10 such groups worldwide – with Ayalon’s upcoming visit.
Richler said that the Canadian friends’ group has been “operating under the radar screen in recent years,” quietly supporting the Israeli group. She became involved this summer after completing her term as president of Inclusion International, an advocacy organization for people with intellectual disabilities with about 200 member organizations worldwide. Richler met Ayalon at a conference in Berlin in June, the month her presidency ended.
“I think it’s really heartening that someone of his stature is standing behind AKIM,” she said. “But I think it’s also very important that he sees more inclusion in Israel as a way of helping to build and strengthen Israeli society.
“People who learn to include people who have an intellectual disability can learn to include everybody,” she added.
Among the factors motivating Richler’s involvement, she mentioned the new United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which Israel has signed and expects to ratify by the end of December. “It focuses on recognizing people with disabilities as people who have both rights and responsibilities.
“For a few years now, AKIM has been supporting people with disabilities to volunteer in the IDF or get involved in national civic service.
“Israel is now the first country to recognize people with disabilities as full members of the forces, and to allow them to contribute to Israeli security and its ongoing future.”
Ayalon’s schedule includes talks in a private home on Oct. 4, in a downtown office on Oct. 5 and, at York University, under the auspices of its Jewish teacher education program, on Oct. 6.
For further information about Ayalon’s first two presentations, call 416-955-0300; or, for information about the presentation at York, e-mail Prof. Sarah Horowitz at [email protected].
