Yekite Mengistu

Yekite and her family emigrated from Ethiopia in 2006 when she was 10 years old. She joined Nishmat’s N.E.W. Pre-College Program in 2016 after her National Service post assisting in the medical wing of Mivaseret Tzion’s Ethiopian Absorption Center.  Since the the age of 14, Yekete led the struggle to bring her older brother Moges from Ethiopia to Israel. Yet during her year at Nishmat, she redoubled her efforts, tenaciously lobbying the government- demonstrating, writing letters, and meeting officials of the Ministry of the Interior. She prevailed, and after 12 years, Yekete and her family were finally reunited with her brother upon his immigration to Israel this year. Yekete credits her ability to successfully advocate for her brother’s aliyah as a direct result of the support and personal empowerment she gained at Nishmat. “There is no other program quite like Nishmat; its uniqueness lies in the diversity of the students and their many paths of interest. Nishmat will be an important part of my life for many years to come and I want to thank the staff—especially Dr. Esti Barel and Yoni Brander, who assisted me during my personal quest.”  Yekete is now a first year Nursing student at the Hebrew University/Hadassah Ein Kerem.