Yeshiva students visit a senior citizens' cen
Yeshiva students visit a senior citizens' cenMoked 109

Seventy students of the Naveh Yeshiva in Jerusalem are helping a Jerusalem social service organization to distribute “Purim portions” (mishloach manot) to elderly Jerusalemites.

The project was coordinated by “Moked 109,” an organization that reaches out to the elderly and helps them with day to day activities that are difficult for them, such as cleaning their homes and working in their gardens. In addition, the organization has a major drive every Purim during which it gives out the traditional gifts of foods and treats to many elderly people in the city.

The students were given packages and a list of elderly residents to whom to distribute them. Afterwards, they visited a Moked 109 senior citizens' center, where they celebrated Purim with dozens of elderly Jerusalemites, singing and dancing for hours.

Cochav Cohen, who heads the organization, said that Moked 109 has been operating for 26 years and serves over 2,500 elderly, many of them housebound. Over 100 volunteers – many of them elderly themselves – conduct home visits, assisting them with shopping, errands, and cleaning, along with helping elderly Holocaust survivors write their life stories.

We were very happy to meet the people here,” said one of the Naveh students. “It was great meeting them and handing out mishloach manot, but it was also very interesting speaking with them and seeing the joy on their faces. You could they were very happy that we were there.”