Only a few of these people have requested heaters, due to their inability to pay electricity bills. Many elderly people remain at home, and leave only to warm up in heated public places. You can also lend them a hand…

The Meir Panim –Power of Giving branches have reported a rise of 30% in the number of appeals to the organization. The requests are primarily for warm clothing, coats and blankets. Many seniors also request warm food. Citizens who are interested in contacting the organization are welcome to call *3656.

The volunteers on call report that families often seek creative solutions in order to survive the cold. Among other ideas, some families have all members sleep in the same bed in order to generate warmth and save the costly expense of heating more than one room.

The neediest people are those who live on the streets and lack even a roof to provide them with shelter from the elements. Dozens of homeless have recently flooded the hostels run by charity organizations in the large cities, mainly in Jerusalem and Tel-Aviv.

Even those homeless who prefer to sleep on the sidewalk rather than turning to the services cannot survive the cold weather, and they often turn to the hostels to find shelter for a few days in order to escape the winter chill.

Power of Giving branches are dispersed throughout Israel. For a list of the branches and opening hours, please click here.