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Our History and Progress
El Halev ("To The Heart") began in 2003, the brainchild of founders Yudit Sidikman and Jill Shames. As martial artists, self-defense instructors and members of the National Women's Martial Arts Federation in the US, Sidikman and Shames knew first-hand what the martial arts and self-defense study contributed to their lives and to the lives of the women around them. Soon after Shames made Aliyah, the duo created and ran Israel's first multi-style event for women martial artists, the Circle of Strength. That annual event is now in its 12th (Bat Mitzvah) year. In 2003, as a result of feedback from the Circle of Strength, Sidikman and Shames joined together with other female Martial Artists to create El HaLev, a non-profit organization dedicated to empowering women in Israel. With each new outbreak of violence, El HaLev has created new programs to give an ever-widening circle of people the knowledge and skills they need to successfully come to their own defense.
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