Nestled in the heart of Ra’anana, Israel, Beit Issie Shapiro doesn’t look much different from the outside — a modest campus surrounded by trees and laughter. But behind its gates is a place transforming lives daily, where innovation meets compassion and every child is seen not for their disability, but for their potential.
“Everything we do is driven by people with disabilities themselves, ensuring their voices are at the forefront of decision making that impacts their lives,” is front and centre on their website.
Founded in 1980 by Naomi Stuchiner in memory of her father, Issie Shapiro, Beit Issie began as a small therapeutic and educational centre for children with developmental disabilities. Beit Issie Shapiro now works across the entire range of physical, intellectual, developmental and emotional disabilities, across all ages and sectors, impacting 500,000 people annually in Israel and abroad. Today, it stands as Israel’s leading pioneer in the field, recognized internationally and replicated around the world.
Inside the bright classrooms and sensory rooms, children are engaged in cutting-edge therapies — from hydrotherapy in state-of-the-art pools to inclusive play at Israel’s groundbreaking inclusive early childhood campus. The centre serves more than just the children; it embraces families, educators and communities.
A model of inclusivity, they have recently opened the Beit Raz Campus, the first inclusive and integrated early childhood campus in Israel. Beit Raz sees children with and without disabilities playing and learning together, from the age of six months old.
An Azrieli Foundation Canada program operated under Direction and Control by the Azrieli Foundation Israel, Beit Issie has established Israel’s first National Mental Health Center for People with Disabilities, offering therapy, trauma intervention and mental health services to address the lack of mental health resources available to those living with disabilities, and to train more clinical psychology residents to help address this gap.
This project ensures a comprehensive approach to improving mental health care and support for individuals with developmental disabilities, including neurodevelopmental disorders and their families.
Long-term, Beit Issie’s impact ripples far beyond Israel, operating as a ‘global resource hub,’ training professionals across Africa, Europe, and North and South America. During the COVID-19 pandemic, their virtual therapy models provided lifelines to thousands of people online.
But perhaps the most powerful part of Beit Issie is the sense of joy. Parents who once feared isolation find community. Children who once faced exclusion now thrive. And neurodiverse individuals feel supported in managing their mental health challenges. It’s all part of a strategy to erase stigma and change the ecosystem of mental health supports in Israel and around the world– and it’s working.
