The Situation

February 14, 2008 - 8:18 PM by Stephanie

Meet Marcelle. He’s an attractive 15-year-old, isn’t he?

And sweet, let me tell you. I just met him tonight. He’s got a megawatt smile that lights up the room. And he’s smart. Speaks French and a smattering of English.

But he does look a bit down in the dumps in this particular photo.

Well, yeah…To be expected, I guess. After all, he walked & ran thousands and thousands of miles from Africa’s West Coast – Cote d’Ivoire – to Tel Aviv.

Did I mention that’s where he’s from? Yeah. That’s why he speaks French.

Rumor has it that for fleeing refugees like Marcelle, getting to Israel includes torture, imprisonment, the constant threat of death and sometimes witnessing the murder of loved ones.

That’s why he’s alone in the Tel Aviv shelter he shares with dozens of others like him who have fled Eritrea and Sudan. He is an orphan. He was a witness.

He’s desperate for an adoptive family. He has been through the kind of purgatory most of us know only from movies.

And so have many others like him. His name’s not Marcelle, by the way. He’s afraid that if I print his real name something could happen to relatives back in the Cote d’Ivoire.

Volunteer. Donate. Adopt. Foster. Get Involved. The refugees are flooding Tel Aviv’s shelters and they need support and help. Medical. Psychological. Nutritional. Educational. Legal. Nurture.

Get in touch with the African Refugee Development Center to find out what you can do.

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