Beit Ruth Village empowers at-risk girls to become their best selves.
Raz, a young Israeli woman, had extremely low self-esteem and an exceptionally low self-image when she arrived at Beit Ruth for Young Women & Girls At Risk when she was fourteen and a half years old. “I had very little confidence in myself, and I was very suspicious of the people around me,” Raz, who stayed there for two years, said. “Before coming to Beit Ruth, I had lived in another group home for at-risk girls where I was made to feel that nothing would really come out of me. Because of that, my sense of capability was very low.”
She added, “At Beit Ruth, unlike other places I had been, there was a strong focus on empowerment. They tried to strengthen each girl through her own strengths. Sometimes it was through music, sometimes through school, and sometimes through very simple everyday things like preparing dinner together, taking responsibility for tasks in the house, or being part of the daily life there. Looking back, I understand that one of the most important things I received there was the combination of boundaries and support. Boundaries and structure give a person a sense of safety. At Beit Ruth they created a framework that was clear and structured, but also warm, supportive, and empowering.”
Today, besides being a nurse, Raz is also a mental coach (like a life coach, but with a focus on mindset and self-awareness). As she explained, “During my studies I learned about research showing that one of the key elements of a fulfilling life is living according to your strengths. I think that in Beit Ruth, whether intentionally or not, that is exactly what they did. They helped us recognize our strengths and believe in them.”
The concept for Beit Ruth developed when New York philanthropists Michael and Susan (z”l) Ashner were on a mission is Israel in 2003. When touring a residential village for boys at risk, they wondered why there was no such village for girls. Susan, a third-generation survivor of familial abuse, spent the next several years speaking to the Israeli Knesset and many other government, mental health, and related organizations and experts.
Beit Ruth launched a pilot program at a youth hostel near Tel Aviv for 12 girls in 2006. Then the Women’s International Zionist Organization (WIZO) granted land for the Beit Ruth village in Afula in northern Israel.
Now Beit Ruth is a long-term therapeutic residence, school and village that endeavors to give vulnerable and at-risk girls and young women the opportunity to thrive emotionally, socially, and academically, thereby breaking the cycle of violence for themselves and future generations of children in Israel. Beit Ruth works along two simultaneous and equally important efforts to achieve its mission to end the cycle of generational violence – direct on-the-ground educational and therapeutic programs and services that are provided in the Beit Ruth Village and a Center of Knowledge that takes the organization’s expertise beyond the village to grow its reach and impact toward ending the cycle of violence. The third leg is Alumnae support and resources for young women now making their way in the world after leaving the Beit Ruth Village – some in the IDF or National Service, some in higher education or the workplace.
In a safe, structured, and loving home environment, Beit Ruth offers academic and therapeutic resources for abused and at-risk girls and young women, aged 13 to 18 years old from all over Israel, to re-enter society as caring, educated, independent, and empowered young women. The objective is to give each girl the necessary life, education, and social and emotional skills to leave the village as a healthy, happy, educated, and empowered young woman. Beit Ruth operates 24 hours a day, 365 days per year.
According to Danielle Burenstein, Beit Ruth’s executive director, who has held her position for 10 years, “Beit Ruth is a place that doesn’t give up on a girl who needs us most. It is an incubator of ideas to be shared.” She is proud of “the personal connections with girls and young women who are healing and growing before my eyes, witnessing their transformation and being part of it, first-hand, and one life at a time – I know we are doing something extraordinary.”
She added, “Then when you look at the big picture, having been instrumental in the formation of Beit Ruth’s on-site Center of Knowledge, the full extent of our impact far beyond the Village becomes clear. This is the place where doctors and judges, teachers and police, public policymakers, human resources managers, and so many others come to learn from Beit Ruth, how they too can change the course of girls’ lives when those girls have suffered the type of abuse and neglect we see. And this is happening across Israel and far beyond. Lastly, knowing that we have a cohort of 400+ alumnae and growing, whose lives have been saved, changed, transformed by this place called Beit Ruth, and knowing that by extension the people in their lives and if they choose to have children, families—they too will be impacted by Beit Ruth.”
As to challenges, Burenstein cited the passing of Susan Ashner in 2024, adding, “But immediately, our growing community of friends, supporters, and partners, showed just how strongly they are committed, not simply to carrying out Susan’s vision for Israel’s girls at risk but continuing to build on it—for every girl, every young woman who needs Beit Ruth today and who will in the future.”
Burenstein also talked about how females were disproportionately affected by the rise in domestic violence during the COVID pandemic, October 7th and the ongoing war since then, and the current war. Many girls and women have hesitated to call reporting hotlines, saying they felt “their personal problems are ‘not as important’ as the national war effort.” Factors like personal loss (parents, friends, and family killed), economic loss (loss of jobs and livelihoods), absentee parents (called up for duty), and displacement in temporary housing have heightened the risk of abuse within families and for those in temporary living quarters.
In 5 years Burenstein “would like to see Beit Ruth grow in its role as a thought leader a
nd a leading voice in the national and international conversation concerning abuse and violence against girls and women. I’d like to see our impact and reach continue to grow, not just in the number of lives we touch, but the means through which we can advance healing and transformation. We’re not here for transactional care; this is transformative care. And together with Beit Ruth’s growing network of partners, leaders, champions, and supporters, we will continue to innovate for our own girls and for the countless more like them throughout Israel and the world who deserve lives of dignity, safety, independence, and endless possibility.”
She concluded, “Beit Ruth is changing lives. We are changing the face and the fabric of Israel, both broadly and one young woman at a time.”
Beit Ruth’s Annual Gala will be held on Monday, May 4, at Cipriani 42nd Street in New York City. The gala will honor Anya Gross, a member of the Board of Directors, with the Leadership in Action Award in recognition of her steadfast guidance and stewardship of Beit Ruth’s mission and future and Stephanie Wilf Kahn, a rising force on the Young Leadership Council with the Spirit of Beit Ruth Award for her passion and commitment to ensuring a stronger future for Israel’s most vulnerable girls.
Today, Israel is facing profound trauma. Two years of war and ongoing crisis have left many more girls vulnerable. Beit Ruth is on the front lines—providing safety, a path to healing, and quality education that empower our girls to build lives of dignity and independence. As the need grows, so does Beit Ruth. At the request of Israel’s Ministry of Welfare, Beit Ruth is expanding capacity by 25 percent. Beyond that, Beit Ruth has begun planning its next phase of capital growth. This will ensure Beit Ruth remains ready and able to save even more girls and young women for generations to come.
For questions, contact Melissa Mundy at BeitRuth@dsconsultinggroup.com or (212) 888-7003.
Ilene Schneider has been chronicling Jewish life in Orange County for five publications since 1978. She has served as a communications consultant for a number of Jewish organizations. She is a contributing writer to Jlife Magazine.
