AMIT’s story began with founder Bessie Gotsfeld, a fervent advocate for Israel’s youth, whose bold ideas laid the groundwork for the thriving educational network AMIT is today.
Immigrating from Poland to America in 1905 at age 12, Bessie learned from a young age to prioritize caring for others. Together with her husband, Mendel Gotsfeld, she embraced that way of life, building up the Jewish homeland through Keren HaYesod, after the Balfour Declaration in 1917.
Bessie was drawn to the Mizrachi movement and its focus on growing religious life in the fledgling country of Israel. She established the Mizrachi Sisterhood, which became the Mizrachi Women’s Organization of America, a national movement whose focus was to educate religious girls in Israel in a valuable trade so they could be part of Israel’s development.
Bessie and Mendel eventually moved to Palestine in 1932, establishing Mizrachi Women’s first vocational school in Beit Tze’irot Mizrachi in Jerusalem in 1933, and another branch in Tel Aviv soon after.
Following World War II, Bessie opened additional youth villages and schools to support the many immigrants who sought haven in Israel. One of those villages was The Bessie Gotsfeld Children’s Village and Farm School, Kfar Batya, established in 1947. Always modest, Bessie only accepted her name on the school to help further the work of Mizrachi Women.
With no children of their own, Bessie and Mendel were parents to so many and reveled in all their “children’s” successes. A practical visionary, she organized classes to equip mothers with Torah knowledge, so they could teach their children and weave the spiritual chain of Judaism into Israel’s foundation.
Bessie led Mizrachi Women in Israel until her passing in 1962 at age 74, and all these years later, her goals are more vital than ever.
AMIT’s leadership today remains dedicated to Bessie’s legacy, continuously innovating to empower every child in Israel with the tools, confidence, and values to be meaningful contributors and engaged members of Israeli society.
For more information about AMIT, visit AMIT – Building Israel. One Child at a Time.
