Healing Space Rishpon

Background and Founding

• Origins: Healing Space is part of Youth of Light, a nonprofit that has operated for 20 years, originally serving at-risk youth in Rishpon, Israel.
• Immediate Response: Launched overnight on October 7, even before official government action, to support survivors and their families.
• Location: Situated in a natural environment of orchards, herbs, and forest, designed to promote healing and reduce barriers to participation.

Populations Served

• Directly Affected: Survivors of the October 7 attacks, including attendees of the Nova music festival and residents of nearby kibbutzim and moshavim.
• Secondary Circles: Bereaved families, first responders, therapists, police officers, and other trauma-exposed professionals.
• Special Groups: Soldiers with PTSD, evacuated young adults, widows, orphans, and families of hostages or those who have returned.

Program Types and Modalities

• One-Time Intensive Retreats: Day-long group interventions (80–100 people divided into groups of 10), offering a range of therapies—sound healing, yoga, art, herbalism, carpentry, and agriculture.
• Ongoing Programs: Weekly or multi-week sessions over 2–3 months for smaller, specific groups (e.g., soldiers, evacuees), combining somatic work, acupuncture, group therapy, and creative expression.
• Long-Term Drop-In Support: Regular support (e.g., every other Friday) for bereaved families and others, including group and individual therapies.
• Group Focus: Participants are grouped by shared trauma or narrative. Sessions are led by facilitators who integrate different therapeutic approaches.
• Nature as a Tool: The outdoor setting plays a vital role in reducing stigma and offering hope, especially for those hesitant about traditional therapy.

Adaptive Crisis Interventions

• Mobile Response Teams: In times of heightened conflict (e.g., with Iran), Healing Space has deployed services to:
  • Municipal Bomb Shelters: Temporary healing stations for displaced civilians.
  • Hospitals: Wellness interventions for standby staff using unoccupied wards.
• Staffing: Nearly 150 therapists trained in 16 modalities, contributing over 60,000 cumulative hours of trauma care.

Gender and Trauma

• Men: Often face more severe trauma from combat exposure; complex PTSD is common among reservists.
• Women: Typically less exposed to direct violence, but often show strong verbal processing; the cultural stigma around trauma is diminishing.
• Cultural Shift: There is growing institutional and public acknowledgment of trauma, in part due to Healing Space’s impact.

Methods and Effectiveness

• Mind-Body Emphasis: Many participants begin with somatic therapies before engaging in verbal processing.
• Acupuncture: Frequently used and shown to support emotional regulation and enhance group outcomes.
• Agility: Programs are continuously tailored to participant needs and shifting trauma timelines.

Outreach and Resources

• Online Presence: Visuals and information available via Instagram (@chavatmarpe) and YouTube.
• Funding: Healing Space relies on donations and seeks new supporters and foundation partnerships.

Impact and Recognition

• Reach: Over 20,000 people treated since October 2023.
• Expertise: Known for its innovative, group-based, nature-centered trauma response.
• Ongoing Relevance: Continues to evolve to meet emerging crises and remains a critical resource for trauma-affected communities across Israel.

Resources

• Zoom Presentation by Healing Space Rishpon to Israel Trauma Mission 2025-06-19

Donate to Healing Space Rishpon

Bios

Ilana Kwartin is an inspirational speaker, feminist activist, legislative advisor, author, and entrepreneur. She specializes in women’s rights and lectures on the convergence of law and gender, women’s rights in Israel, coercive control in marriage, and activism as a tool for social change.

Ilana represents women who experience coercive control in their relationships and teaches Zumba to women as a means of self-empowerment. She is the author of Imprisoned, a book exploring the hidden phenomenon of coercive control in relationships.

A mother of four, Ilana lives with her family in the southern periphery of Israel. She currently serves as CEO of the Patrizio Paoletti Association Israel, which operates the Youth of Light project for youth at risk across the country. She also leads Healing Space Rishpon, a pioneering response to the unprecedented trauma inflicted on Israel by the October 7th tragedy and the subsequent war. The farm provides both routine and emergency healing for victims of direct and vicarious trauma on their journey to recovery.

Ira Khudyak is a clinical psychologist (M.A., University of Haifa) and experienced psychotherapist specializing in trauma, group facilitation, and body–mind approaches. She currently serves as Program Director and Group Facilitator at Healing Space Rishpon, a therapeutic farm supporting individuals affected by the Iron Swords War, where she also supervises teams of therapists.

Ira maintains a private practice in Tel Aviv, offering psychodynamic therapy—integrating CBT when needed—to adults and adolescents, including international clients via online sessions. She brings extensive clinical experience from internships at AMCHA (trauma-focused therapy), the Association for Children at Risk (working with children on the autism spectrum), and public mental health clinics, where she conducted diagnostic assessments and provided both individual and couples therapy.

In addition to her clinical work, Ira has led support groups for postpartum women, facilitated teacher and parent workshops in educational settings, and coordinated community projects for at-risk youth and immigrant girls. Her early professional background includes working in shelters for victims of human trafficking and coordinating youth services for vulnerable populations.

Fluent in Hebrew and Russian, with a strong command of English, Ira brings a rich blend of clinical expertise, group facilitation skills, and a deep commitment to supporting resilience and growth in individuals and communities.