"I feel sorry for the person who was killed but I feel sorrier for the people left behind." - Koby Mandell
Spoken to a classmate at the funeral of a father of 6 three month before Koby himself was murdered.
The Koby Mandell Foundation runs therapeutic healing programs for those who have lost a mother, father, sister, brother, or child to terror and other tragedies. Overnight camps and retreats provide individuals and families with the tools to translate the pain and suffering of tragedy into positive personal growth, deeper interpersonal relationships, and active community leadership. Programs employ affirmative life experiences, relevant informal education, and emotional and psychological support in formal group discussions and informal interactions.
All of our programs are provided free of charge, and combine formal, informal, and recreational therapeutic techniques to foster an environment of emotional support. Group therapy activities include music, art, and sports therapy. Participants draw strength from each other and their shared experiences, creating long-lasting bonds of friendship and a community of survivors.
Our innovative methods for dealing with grief are based on the personal experiences of Rabbi Seth and Sherri Mandell, who established the Foundation in 2001 after their 13-year-old son Koby was murdered by terrorists while hiking near their home in Israel. Their first hand knowledge of loss and bereavement engenders a high level of trust from the affected families. who would not otherwise seek help. .
Our programs are built on a model that is not available anywhere else. There is no government agency or organization that approaches this work the way we do. We provide a unique "missing piece" that has been very well received by both the professional community and the unofficial society of terror survivors in Israel. This latter endorsement is vital, because even the best protocols are useless in the treatment of emotional trauma unless the clients are receptive to the services. Our model is powerful and beneficial because it synthesizes the power of people with shared experience helping each other with quality professional care delivered by professional therapists, grief counselors, and social workers. All of our work is delivered through our special threefold approach that includes: Recreation, Creative Therapy, and Community Building.