5 Shaked Street.
Sderot
Israel
- Democracy and community development
- Heritage
- Human rights
- Others
- Youth and education
Gvanim’s mission is to empower individuals and communities and help them reach their full potential. As a multi-faceted support organization, we offer a network of continuous coverage to disadvantaged populations. While our focus is Sderot, many of our programs support the Northern Negev and several now operate on a national level.
Our guiding principle is to create realistic models for change and implement them in partnership with the communities we serve.
Our objectives vary per field and program; we focus on integrating people and communities in Israel's socio-geo-economic periphery into mainstream society by providing them with the tools, skills, knowledge, and mindset they need to overcome their disadvantages and become independent and contributing adults who will lead their communities in growth and social improvement.
Fields of action include: people with disabilities; young community leadership and social entrepreneurship; immigrants in crisis; early childhood development; children, youth, and families at risk; and community resilience.
Centers for community programs include: the Tachlit-Meir Center for Youth at High Risk; the Hadar School for Children with Severe Disabilities; Sderot's Volunteer House; the Atzmaut Center for Ethiopian Immigrants; the Dorot Center for Immigrants from Kafkaz; the Netivim Center for Young Adults; the Parent-Teen Center; the Parent-Child Center; the Open House for Early Childhood Programs; Gvanim Ashkelon Center for adults with emotional disabilities; The Assisted Living Complex for adults with disabilities; the Rainbow Club (social club for adults with disabilities), Star Children Social Club.
Additional programs we're partnered with include Yachini Student Village, the Sderot Resilience Center.
Gvanim will bring with it 18 years of successful experience in the field of non-profit social programs. It has experience in building and participating in multi-organizational forums and creating cooperative programs with them. It has created models for efficiency and success that it shares with other organizations. Gvanim has experience in "working from within" – working with members of the communities it supports to ensure a good fit, community involvement, long term benefit of its programs. Gvanim will be an active partner in the AFL Israel network to promote programs that support and promote society and help people facing challenges triumph, integrate into, and lead social change in normative society. It will also be an active partner in promoting organizational change, and hopes to learn much from its network partners, as well.
Gvanim's work method of choice is working in close partnership with like-minded organizations, associations, and government offices. We recognize the value of pooling knowledge, resources, and energy to create unique innovative programs based on the wide expertise available from multiple sources. Working in coordination requires effort but generally results in higher efficiency and less duplication of programs. We strive to model cooperative projects and have helped created national networks such as the national forum for Early Childhood Development (led by Anat Learner, Gvanim's Field Director for ECD) and several regional employment and business development forums (led by Yigal Bracha, director of Gvanim's Netivim Center.) Joining the ALF network is a natural extension of our policy. We believe that joining ALF will provide numerous valuable opportunities to expand programs, learn from others, and support fellow organizations dedicated to improving the lives of disadvantaged populations.