U.S. Athletes Visit At-Risk Kids at Yemin Orde Youth Village in Israel

ROCKVILLE, Md. - July 9, 2013 - PRLog -- Friends of Yemin Orde is pleased to announce that a group of young U.S. athletes, who are participating in the 2013 World Maccabiah games in Israel, will visit Yemin Orde Youth Village to meet the Village’s at-risk immigrant children and share their exciting stories about competing in one of the largest international sporting events in the world. The visit to the youth village is an opportunity for the athletes to “pay it forward” and encourage the vulnerable youth at the Village to pursue their dreams with dedication and passion. The children at Yemin Orde are mostly from Ethiopia, former Soviet Union, Brazil and Eastern Europe and have all suffered trauma in their lives: from neglect and loss to isolation and extreme poverty.

Positive role models, such as the young Maccabiah athletes, are important to Yemin Orde’s at-risk youth and give them hope for their own future achievements. Yemin Orde is a home, safe haven and school to hundreds of vulnerable youth from around the world. Visit www.yeminorde.org for details.

Friends of Yemin Orde is the U.S. –based fundraising arm of Yemin Orde Youth Village and Yemin Orde Educational Initiatives. The organization, in part, helps support the Village’s daily expenses for exceptional care of the children and its many extra-curricular programs, such as sports and recreation, and art and music classes, among others. During the school year, children participate on Yemin Orde’s track, soccer and basketball teams; one of its recent graduates, an Ethiopian-Israeli named Amlaki, is a champion archer and member of Israel’s Maccabiah archery team.

At Yemin Orde, the U.S. athletes plan to distribute gifts for the children, tour the Village and talk about their Maccabiah experience.

Most of the children at Yemin Orde are first and second generation Israelis or new immigrants to Israel, whose families are unable to care for them because of extreme poverty, parental illness or unstable family environment. Many of the children are from countries with restrictions on religious and daily freedoms. Yemin Orde Youth Village serves as a model of excellence in Israel for its dedicated staff and unique educational methodology called “The Village Way”, which helps at-risk children develop self-esteem, cultural identity, leadership skills and a positive attitude about their future. Yemin Orde graduates have a lasting connection to the Village and are successful and productive members of Israeli society.

Yemin Orde Educational Initiatives, an independent organization, expands the Village Way methodology by providing resources, teacher training, workshops and interventions to other youth villages and public schools in Israel with at-risk youth populations.

The first Maccabiah games took place in 1932, when 400 Jewish athletes met in the streets of Tel Aviv. The event aimed to help athletes who were banned from international competition because of their religion. The event offers athletes from all over the world the opportunity to compete in Israel, tour the country and learn more about Israeli society.