Save a Child’s Heart

Save A Child’s Heart is an Israeli non profit organization that provides children from all over the world who are unable to receive pediatric cardiac surgeries with life-saving heart treatments free of all charge. The children receive surgery at the Wolfson Medical Center in Holon and live in a children’s home before their treatments and during their recovery.

Kathryn Pataki (’18 AS) was a full time volunteer at Save A Child’s Heart’s Children’s Home in Holon, Israel. The Children’s Home is where children, mothers, and nurses from all over the world live while they are in Israel. Kathryn lived in the children’s home with them and was responsible for keeping the children entertained and being there for them throughout their healing process.

“This experience changed my life,” said Kathryn. “I went to Israel to be a part of an amazing organization that has saved over 3,500 children’s lives from 50 different countries, but I didn’t realize how this experience would save me. Every single child I grew to love would not have survived if it wasn’t for Save A Child’s Heart and that is something that I cannot wrap my mind around. It made me realize that every person should have medical treatment available to them. This civic engagement experience was not about how much money I could donate but about how much love I could give and receive (as cheesy as that sounds.) I lived with children, mothers, and nurses from Ethiopia, Zanzibar, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, and East Timor and I learned more from them then they learned from me without a doubt. There is not a day that goes by where I don’t think of them. What will i look for in subsequent experiences? Well, I look forward to going back to Save A Child’s Heart.”