BROTHERS FOR LIFE 2022
Who
We Are Brothers for Life (“BFL”) is a non-profit organization created and run by wounded IDF officers and based on the unique model of “injured soldiers helping newly injured soldiers.” BFL is currently working with over 1,200 injured soldiers and their families.
Our
Mission To empower injured combat soldiers to reclaim their lives, fulfill their dreams, and continue to serve and inspire the Jewish nation.
What
We Do From the moment an IDF soldier is injured, our hospital visitation teams deploy to the hospital to connect the soldier to BFL, assess his immediate needs, and begin the mentoring process. We provide critical medical support to soldiers who are severely wounded and chronically suffering, including second-opinion consults, cutting-edge medical devices, and surgeries performed by leading US physicians and surgeons. We provide over 25 different soldier-run programs, including counseling, which focus on helping our injured members overcome PTSD. We provide comprehensive financial support, including direct financial aid, financial counseling and a free loan fund. We provide educational scholarships, vocational training, internships, and job placement. We inspire thousands of young Jewish students around the world with the ethical values of injured IDF soldiers who are now committed to helping their fellow soldiers. We provide support through numerous events and activities to soldiers’ families.
BFL
Changes Lives We are serving over 1,200 injured soldiers and their families, and our community welcomes an additional 8 to 10 wounded veterans every month. 98% of our members report that BFL has markedly improved their well-being. 95% of our BFL members now feel more connected to their friends and family. 60% of our members were strongly motivated by BFL to begin academic programs. 68% of our members feel motivated to help other injured soldiers who are suffering.
How
Can You Help? Brothers for Life is looking for partners who want to help wounded combat soldiers reclaim their lives after injury. The cost of one soldier's rehabilitation is approximately $5,300 per year. A group of BFL advisors has stepped forward to underwrite our administrative and fundraising costs, allowing 100% of your donation to go directly to the services and programs assisting our injured soldiers. Help us reach our 2022 budget of $7,500,000 by supporting us today.
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Meet
The Soldiers Below are two BFL members whose active participation in BFL Programs has helped them rebuild their lives:
Yuval After serving as a paratrooper, Yuval became a student at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. In 2006, in the midst of his exams, he was called back to serve in the 2nd Lebanon War. The fighting was intense, and Yuval’s unit took shelter in an unprotected house. Two missiles struck the house directly, killing nine members of his unit and wounding many others. Yuval was covered with his fellow soldiers’ blood and had no food or water. The wait for rescue was interminable, and Yuval was deeply traumatized by this experience. When Yuval returned to finish his studies, he started suffering from flashbacks, nightmares, and anger attacks. He felt as if no one understood him and that he was a burden to others. He then isolated himself from his loved ones and started taking psychiatric medications and sleeping pills to get through his emotional pain. When those medications stopped helping, he began using drugs, first soft ones, and then harder ones. Brothers for Life helped Yuval get on a healthier path to recovery. Today Yuval is 41, healthy, and happily married with twins. He volunteers at BFL where he heads the Triathlon Group, leads our Parent Workshop, and coordinates the Resilience Project. He is a personal fitness trainer at our gym where he also provides one-on-one emotional counseling sessions.
Ben Ben, 32 years old, suffered catastrophic wounds while serving in the Golani Brigade. In 2008 during Operation Cast Lead, a huge blast left Ben with multiple head injuries, the complete loss of his right arm, and the inability to use his right hand. In 2019 Ben approached BFL’s Medical Project to ask if they could help him with the scars on his right shoulder. He didn’t even ask for help with his hand, thinking that it was a lost cause. BFL brought Ben’s case to the attention of doctors at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. After months of evaluation, one of their leading surgeons offered Ben the opportunity to undergo an innovative surgical procedure, using muscle tissue from his shoulder to restore function back to his left hand. After a 13-hour, highly complicated surgery, Ben was able to move his fingers for the first time in over a decade. He returned to Israel last August for further rehabilitation and today is able to hold objects in his hand, and even play the piano! The surgery restored more than Ben’s hand. It gave him a renewed belief in the power of brotherhood.
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Brothers4Life
BrothersForLife-BFL
270 South Hanford Street, Suite #207 Seattle WA 98134 Phone +1 206-691-5096 admin@brothersforlife.com
www.brothersforlife.com