Real girls, real lives.
These are their stories.

Bayit Lepleitot taught me that my life — as hard as it seemed — I will never give up on. The love and attention I received at the home led me to the profession of social work, in which today I help other people in hours of crisis and distress.

I don't live in an orphanage. I'm blessed to live with my special Bayit Lepleitot family. We are all living together in a beautiful and caring place where we can grow and thrive. Our future is so promising.

During my years at Bayit Lepleitot, the support and personal encouragement that our supporters from across the globe would give us helped to raise our morale and lift our spirits. By choosing to join our Bayit Lepleitot family, they imbued us with a genuine sense of pride.

When I got married, I was a little apprehensive that the fact that my new wife came from a troubled background would affect her ability to build a stable, loving family. My fears were laid to rest by the incredible support and guidance we got from a professional therapist under the auspices and sponsorship of Bayit Lepleitot. I came to realize that in fact Bayit Lepleitot hadn't been an institution where my wife spent her childhood years. It was her super-large, warm and loving family - concerned for every aspect of her wellbeing.

As a supporter of Bayit Lepleitot for many years, I was thrilled to visit the orphanage in person on my recent trip to Israel. It was a most heartwarming moment and it shall forever remain a memory worth cherishing.

Sorting clothes, removing stains, ironing and folding laundry for more than 300 girls — that is exhausting physical work. But it is work of love. I will never forget how one girl, new here, suddenly hugged me and said: "Mrs. Wertheimer, I love the smell of my clothes so much. They smell like a blossoming garden! Thank you!" Until then, that girl did not know what clean, laundered clothes were. It is moving to see girls who arrived neglected, in worn-out clothes — becoming smiling, well-groomed girls.