Bet Nechama

She felt insecure and alone.

Until she found a safe home.

A safe home

for girls

With a heart

Bet Nechama is a home for girls ages 15-22 who have been on a journey and need a warm, loving, non-judgemental environment to help them heal. Often having experienced trauma, abuse, or rejection, the girls feel, sometimes for the first time in their lives, accepted for who they are. Our staff aims to operate in a ‘no agenda’ approach. The goal is not to change the girls but to provide them with a safe place where healing and growth can take place.

Healing benefits

the whole family

Hear it from their hearts…

Esti was 21 years old, in Israel, far away from me in the States. I knew she was struggling and in tremendous pain. There was so little I could do. Then girls’ house she was at closed down, and I found her a family to stay with, but she was so miserable there. I was at a total loss. Then Sara met her, and everything changed. Sara is a malach. She welcomed my daughter into her heart and home, giving her unconditional love and support. She was honest with me, helping me understand where my daughter was at. I felt like Sara was at my side, helping me along the journey at every step. I have no words to thank Sara for her patience, authenticity, and love that allowed my daughter to be herself and heal from her pain.”

“I was kicked out of school at 15 and had nowhere to go. I joined a seminary in Israel but hated every minute. As a sincere girl from a chassidish background, the options for at-risk teens weren’t right for me. Life looked so bleak. Once I joined Bet Nechama, everything changed for me. I loved it right away. For the six months I was there, I worked and had CranioSacral therapy sessions twice weekly with Sara. Bet Nechama was a warm, loving home that gave me the space to heal. It was the most supportive, accepting environment I could have wished for. I knew that Sara loved me unconditionally, but still encouraged me to take responsibility for my actions. Today, I am a self-aware, independent, responsible adult with a healthy mindset and endless opportunities ahead of me.”

“Living in the US while my daughter was suffering in Israel was a nightmare. Malky was desperately unhappy in the seminary she was at, and I couldn’t pull her out because I had no idea where to put her. I felt so helpless. When she mentioned Bet Nechama, I was skeptical but agreed to look at the place when I came to Israel. I was immediately taken by Sara’s warmth, patience, and kindness. When Malky joined Bet Nechama, she told me, ‘Ma, this is the best thing you ever did for me.’ I was so calm while Malky was at Bet Nechama. I knew she was happy and being cared for by such wonderful people. Sara was her mother when I was so far away, and I am so grateful to her. Malky left as a confident, growing, self-aware teenager with a bright future.”

Welcome home,

come on in

Founder and eim habayit speaks

Hi, my name is Sara Vital (nee Wittler). I’m grateful to have two decades of experience fostering and caring for searching teens here in Israel. I started Bet Nechama when I saw many girls who needed a home where they could feel loved, accepted, and validated to help them heal. As an alternative health practitioner, I have witnessed the benefit of holding non-judgemental space and presence for spiritual healing to occur. Through non-invasive treatments like Shiatsu, CranioSacral Therapy, and Somato Emotional Release, I’ve seen girls reconnect to their inner core and flourish. As the eim bayit, my home and heart are open for the girls. I honestly believe in the girls and their abilities, and do all I can to support, care, and encourage them on their healing journey.

How We

support healing

Much more than just a bed

A warm
home

Whether they do not have a physical roof above their heads or an emotional place to call home, these girls receive, some for the first time, a warm and accepting home with girls just like them.

Nourishing
meals

Food is a necessity, but can also be an expression of love. The girls shop for and prepare their favorite foods themselves or with the staff, helping them feel independent and secure.

Therapeutic
support

The therapists, psychiatrists, parents, and the eim habayit work together to provide a healing environment for every girl. Sara also offers alternative health treatments at her clinic to support the healing process.

A family
environment

The eim habayit’s home, just three doors away, is open and inviting. It’s where the girls experience the beauty of a frum family, Shabbat meals, torah life, and meaningful relationships.

It takes a team

to support a girl

Joining minds and hearts for one goal

hindy’s story

Sarah believed in me

“Sara loves me, cares for me, and wants to help me grow”

Hindy was 18 years old and suicidal. She saw no reason to continue living. At that point, she literally lived on the streets, sometimes sleeping on park benches. It was the lowest point in her life. Someone gave her Sara’s number, and she called to ask if she could live with her.
“Calling Sara was terrifying for me. I was scared to trust anyone, scared to be vulnerable, scared to open myself to being hurt again. I stopped believing that life would get any better. I didn’t have the strength to try again, to keep fighting.”
But she has everlasting gratitude to Hashem that He gave her the courage to call Sara. Because that’s when her life finally changed for the better. She doesn’t know where she would be today if she hadn’t found Bet Nechama.

The beating heart

of our home

The values that guide us

Every girl is beautiful and deserving of unconditional love

Feeling held and understood can get you through your struggles

Great things can happen when you give girls space and trust

A holistic approach allows mind, body, and soul to heal

Accepting girls unconditionally invites them to be their authentic selves

A home

for the heart

Where healing can happen

The

team

The people who make it happen

Rabbi Wittler,
Spiritual Advisor

Nachshon Vital,
Health advisor

Sara Vital, Alternative health practitioner.
Founder and eim bayit of Bet Nechama

Etty Davis MBACP, CERT Psychotherapist.
Therapeutic supervisor at Bet Nechama

Mr. Dov Wittler
Theraputic Advisor

Dr Tamir Shefer
Psychologist and Family Counselor

Trany Mermelstein,
MSW,Social Worker and Mentor

Mrs Michelle Baruch,
Program Manager at Bet Nechama

FAQs

For all your answers

What do the girls do every day in your program?

We are not a program- we’re a residential safe home. We work with every girl one-on-one to help them structure their days with work, study, volunteer work, and therapies, outside the home, depending on their abilities and needs.

What are the rules of the home?

We try to keep our rules minimal. Other than the basic house rules necessary for shared living, our three rules are: no boys in the house, no smoking or substances in the house, and respect for Shabbat and chagim must be shown in the home’s public spaces.

What aged girls do you accept?

Girls between ages 15 and 22.

What’s the criteria for being accepted in the home?

It doesn’t matter where the girl is on her journey. The girls must be open with themselves, authentic with where they’re at, and willing to allow us to support them.

Are you a recognized charity?

Yes.

What’s the secret to your success?

I try to be authentic and transparent, a fellow traveler facing my own life challenges and journeying the path together with the girls. The girls sense my sincerity, warmth, and acceptance, and it helps them open up and connect to their authentic selves.

How it

began

The inspiration behind it all

Bet Nechama is called after Mrs. Nechama (Norma) Wittler a’’h, the beloved grandmother of Sara Vital, who passed away the same year that Bet Nechama opened its doors.
Mrs. Wittler a’’h personified all that Bet Nechama stands for today. She was a loving, kind, and wise woman who overlooked the externals of every person she met, seeing through to their soul and connecting to their inner essence.
She was a ‘home,’ a safe place for every person to feel heard, understood, and validated, regardless of how they looked or behaved.
Bet Nechama is a projection of her values, providing every neshama with a non-judgmental, loving, warm home as they journey on their path to self-acceptance, inner meaning, and love for life.

Never turning a girl away

No matter the cost

Half the girls at Bet Nechama can’t afford to pay.
But we never allow finances to get in the way of supporting a girl.

Before coming to Bet Nechama, girls are:

Grappling with complex emotional and mental issues
Struggling with feeling unwanted, unloved, and alone
Fighting addiction, eating disorders, and harmful behavior

After living at Bet Nechama, our girls:

Are self-aware, happy, and emotionally healthy
Feel accepted, understood, and loved the way they are
Have tools to manage difficult emotions in a healthy way

Money shouldn’t be the deciding factor between happiness and despair healing and pain acceptance rejection

contact us

Be in touch

קצת עלינו

בית נחמה היא בית חם לצעירות בגלאים 15 עד 22, שעברו אתגרים או טראומה ומעוניינות לחיות במסגרת תומכת אבל עצמאית. הבנות בבית נחמה עובדות או לומדות תוך כדי קבלת טיפול בסביבה מכילה מקבלת ותומכת.
הגישה הטבעית של בית נחמה נותנת קבלה וחום שמאפשרת לבנות לגלות את המהות החיובית שלהן ולהתקדם לחיות חיים בריאים ויעילים.
יש בתוכנו צעירות שנאבקות באתגרים יומיומיים ומרגישות לבד. המטרה של בית נחמה היא לתמוך ולתת בית ומענה הוליסטי לבנות האלה. התמיכה הנכונה בזמן הנכון יכול לעשות את כל ההפרש ולתת חיים חדשים לבנות שנזקקות.

נא לעזור לנו לעזור להם. תנו בית חם לעוד בחורה שצריכה…

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