The Power of Love

I have had the privilege of working for a non-profit organization called Tsad Kadima. This organization was founded almost 30 years ago by a group of parents from Jerusalem who shared a dream for a better life for their young children with Cerebral Palsy (CP). For those who don’t know, CP is caused when there is a neurological damage to the fetal or infant part of the brain which controls motor function. As a result, children with Cerebral Palsy will struggle with posture, balance and movement.Today, the initial group of children, whose parents started it all, accomplished so much. Some of them served the army, many of them are married with children of their own. Tsad Kadima continues moving forward, step after step, one year to the next, giving more and more children the opportunity for a better life.

The BBC documentary called “Standing Up for Joe” from 1985 was a change maker in the lives of thousands of children. The documentary followed a kid with Cerebral Palsy called Joe and his family to the Peto Institute in Budapest Hungary, behind the Iron Curtain, and exposed the West to the Conductive Education approach. Soon after watching this documentary, many families from Jerusalem and later from other parts of Israel, packed and moved to Budapest and the results were incredible. For the first time these children showed progress and had hope for a better life, a normal life. Their parents got together and founded Tsad Kadima (a step forward).

Tsad Kadima received the support of the Ministry of Education after which the first group of students was sent to Budapest to join the 4 year long Conductive Education program. The first group graduated in 1992 and the first educational rehabilitation center was opened in Rishon Le Zion. Today, 30 years later, Tsad Kadima is an honored member of the International Community of Conductive Education with 5 educational rehabilitation centers across Israel, where hundreds of children, young adults and adults are attending its variety of programs and a highly professional Israeli program for ‘Conductive Education’ in conjunction with the Ministry of Education, the Levinsky College and the Peto Institute from which 10 new conductors are certified every 3 years.

Today, the initial group of children, whose parents started it all, accomplished so much. Some of them served the army, many of them are married with children of their own. Tsad Kadima continues moving forward, step after step, one year to the next, giving more and more children the opportunity for a better life.