Save a Child’s Heart

Description of Organization:

Save a Child’s Heart (SACH) is Israel’s largest humanitarian organization, with a global mission to provide life-saving cardiac care to children of all backgrounds, regardless of race, religion, gender, nationality, or financial status, who suffer from congenital and acquired heart defects and have no access to quality care in their native countries. Altogether, we have saved the lives of over 4,700 children from 57 countries and trained more than 100 international medical personnel, including Tanzania’s first-ever pediatric cardiac surgeon and his team. 50% of the children SACH treats are from Israel’s surrounding Arab countries, the West Bank and Gaza. The rest are from Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe and South America. SACH is also embarking on its biggest project yet, building an International Pediatric Cardiac Center – the first in the Middle East – at the Wolfson Medical Center, which will serve as a Children’s Hospital.

Bnai Mitzvah Projects or Volunteer Opportunities offered by the organization for children ages 11 - 13:

Save a Child’s Heart encourages bnei miztvah aged teens to select a fundraising and awareness project that utilizes their unique talents to help children suffering from life-threatening heart disease receive treatment in Israel. Some examples of past bnei mitzvah projects include:

1. Collection of items for the Children’s Home like toothbrushes, which were transferred to the home by a US SACH person, but could be brought in person by the child and their family
2. Charity Baseball and Soccer tournaments
3. Second-hand clothing sale and hand-made accessories sale by an aspiring designer
4. A circus show
5. A personal spin-a-thon challenge

Children are also encouraged to write notes to the children in the Children’s Home and hospital and to collect smaller toys or materials that are easy to transport to Israel.

A new initiative that is hoped to instate this year is to give children the opportunity to sell toys whose proceeds will go to SACH, and to deliver them locally to children receiving surgery in the states. Lastly, if children and their families are visiting Israel we welcome them to visit the hospital and Children’s Home, to select an activity to play with the children (to deliver any collected materials) and to receive a personalized gift from the children at the Children’s Home. Either way, bnei mitzvah will receive a thank you package from SACH after the completion of their project.

Minimum Age to Volunteer:

no minimum

Offer family volunteer opportunities?

yes