From the frontlines of war, a number of Israeli soldiers have been calling the pro-life organization EFRAT with an urgent request — to save their unborn children’s lives back home.
Along with EFRAT’s nearly 100 volunteers, Ruth Tidhar, a social worker who is the director of EFRAT’s direct support department, has been serving as a last-minute messenger of life by contacting these men’s pregnant wives and urging them not to have an abortion. In some cases, they’ve reached women just in time on the day of their abortion appointment.
Many of the expectant wives think having an abortion would be following their husbands’ wishes. Before serving in the Israel Defense Forces, some of their husbands had asked them to terminate their pregnancies and not bring a child into a world of chaos.
But amid the life and death they have been faced with in war, several soldiers have had a change of heart. They realize their counsel was wrong. Every day they battle to stay alive and help others do the same.
‘They’re trying to kill us’
Tidhar recalled the words of one young soldier who had begged EFRAT to help convince his wife to not have an abortion.
“They’re trying to kill us,” he said. “How can we do such a thing?”
Similarly, another soldier messaged EFRAT explaining that his fiancée was considering an abortion.
“We don’t know what to do,” he said. “It’s just a really scary time for us. I’m fighting in Gaza. She’s pregnant with twins.”
The soldier didn’t want his fiancée to have an abortion, but she was leaning toward ending the pregnancy anyway. His call to EFRAT was one last cry for help.
He’d come to the right place.
How EFRAT helps women and unborn children
By having a hotline open 24/7, EFRAT serves as a listening ear to distressed callers who need help in preventing an abortion and giving life to a child.
“Every phone call to EFRAT could be the life of an entire person,” Tidhar said.
“The women who come to us, they’re looking for a lifesaver,” she continued. “They’re looking for somebody to help hold them up and give them assistance so that they can go ahead with the pregnancy and have the baby and avoid having an abortion. Our intent is to give her the strength and the backing she needs.”
Since 1977, EFRAT has helped more than 88,000 women in Israel, saving tens of thousands of lives. Out of the thousands of women Tidhar has personally talked to through EFRAT, she’s discovered a commonality.
“We know from them that women who undergo abortions, they’re terribly sorry about it afterward; they regret it,” Tidhar said. Many women who turn to EFRAT for help are trying to avoid a second or third abortion. They know the magnitude of emotional pain that comes from the experience.
That’s why EFRAT offers emotional support information for women.
“The information that she’s not going to get from anyplace else is how sorry she’s going to feel if she undergoes the abortion,” Tidhar said. “The woman is deliberating. She’s in a terrible situation — the stormiest intersection of her life — and she has to make a decision very quickly. So we get in there.”
Many of the nearly 100 volunteers throughout the nation of Israel serve because they too understand the pain of abortion and want to help others who feel they have no other option.
Beyond the emotional support, EFRAT provides physical help for mothers in need. After the baby is born, EFRAT delivers a brand-new crib, stroller, baby bath and baby kit to the family’s door. The family will receive two years’ worth of diapers, formula, wipes and food if they are needed.
“Fifteen hundred dollars is enough to save the baby, to give a basic package. Where do you get a deal like that? Fifteen hundred dollars and you save the baby,” Tidhar said. “The generous donors who give that also receive a certificate with a date of birth and the baby’s first name.”
Still, EFRAT goes one step further.
Because finances are often the reason for women’s abortions, EFRAT has a program to help women get back to work through occupational counseling.
“We cover the woman from all different directions to help her know that this baby won’t be a tragedy but will rather be a stepping stone to bigger and greater things and to happiness and fulfillment,” Tidhar said.
Raising an army
It’s not lost on Tidhar that many of the lives saved through EFRAT could now be Israeli soldiers.
A phone call proved her right.
One evening a volunteer called Tidhar to tell her that a boy she helped save 20 years ago is now a part of an elite canine unit of the Israel Defense Forces. He’s helping trained dogs sniff out explosives so soldiers can safely access areas and keep Israelis safe from Hamas.
“That’s one (life) that we know about,” Tidhar said. “But how many thousands do we not know about?”
As the war goes on, Tidhar continues to help save the next generation of Israelis.
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