When chronic illness enters a home, everything shifts.
Parents stretch themselves thin. Siblings adapt quietly. Families learn to function in crisis mode.
Care is focused around the patient... while siblings feel they're becoming more and more invisible.
The entire family feels they are carrying the weight of the world on their shoulders.
Krovim helps carry that heaviness.
Meet The Team
The Krovim team brings together steady hands, warm hearts, and a genuine commitment to supporting you and your family through challenging times.
Each staff member and volunteer shows up because they truly care about making a difference and are eager to provide you with a sense of calm, connection, and community while you navigate all the ups and downs of life with a child who has chronic illness.
Some moments can be beyond rewarding while others can make you feel like ripping your hair out. We are here… holding you close through it all.
JOE KLEIN
Founder & CEO
Joe Klein is a nonprofit leader, builder, and storyteller who has spent the past decade strengthening families and communities across Israel. He is known for his ability to turn vision into action—building programs, leading teams, and creating systems of care that blend compassion, strategy, and human connection. Joe took a single chesed idea and built it from the ground up into a fully formed initiative with a 15-person staff, delivering meaningful, daily support to families in need.
After October 7, he played a key leadership role in emergency relief efforts across Israel, helping guide campaigns and partnerships that raised millions to support families, frontline responders, and communities impacted by the war.
Joe is the Founder and CEO of Krovim, where he continues his mission of surrounding families facing chronic illness and disability with compassionate, practical, and ongoing support. He also serves as President of his shul in Ramat Beit Shemesh where he lives with his wife and four children.
NEDIVA BUECHLER
Director of Operations & Programming
Nediva Buechler is an experienced nonprofit professional who brings a combination of passion and practicality to her work. With a background in nonprofit leadership, education, project management, and community engagement, she translates the mission of Krovim into meaningful and impactful experiences for the families it serves.
Nediva brings both the skill to build the systems, structures, and programs that allow organizations to operate effectively, as well as the ability to connect personally with the families and individuals they serve. Her experience managing complex projects and cultivating strong relationships, enables her to bring a strategic vision that is rooted in attention to individual needs.
At the heart of Nediva’s work, is her goal that no family should have to navigate life's challenges alone. She is committed to creating opportunities for connection and support, and strives to ensure that every Krovim family feels valued, understood, and cared for. Nediva lives in Dolev with her husband and children.
RIVKA BARNES
Director of Family Support &
Case Management
Rivka Barnes is a trauma-informed counsellor and educator with extensive experience supporting children, teens, and families through complex emotional and life challenges. With a background spanning residential youth care, psychiatric settings, community programs, and educational leadership, she is known for her calm presence, clinical insight, and ability to create safe, steady spaces for families under stress.
Rivka has trained in trauma work, DBT skills, psychometric assessment, play therapy foundations, and crisis support, integrating evidence-based practice with empathy and deep human connection. Her work with high-risk youth, adults in psychiatric care, and families navigating instability has shaped her into a thoughtful, intuitive, and grounded professional.
At Krovim, Rivka brings warmth, clarity, and a developmentally sensitive approach to supporting parents and siblings caring for a child with chronic physical illness. She offers consistent guidance, emotional steadiness, and practical understanding—helping families feel held, understood, and never alone.
Clinical Advisors
REBECCA KLEIN
Co Founder & Clinical Advisor
Rebecca Klein, MSW, is a therapist in private practice in Beit Shemesh, Israel, where she works primarily with young adults. She specializes in relational trauma and complex interpersonal relationships, helping clients develop insight, resilience, and healthier patterns of connection.
In addition to her private practice, Rebecca works with Amudim Israel, where she develops curriculum and educational materials for seminaries focused on social-emotional learning and emotional well-being.
Rebecca is the Co-Founder of Krovim where she plays a central role in shaping Krovim’s therapeutic vision and program design, ensuring that all support is grounded in a trauma-informed, family-systems approach that strengthens parents, siblings, and caregivers over the long term
RIKKI JACOBSON DAVIES
Clinical Director
Rikki Jacobson Davies, MSW, is a therapist, educator, and founder of the Center for Relational Resilience. Her expertise in trauma and relational healing helps shape Krovim’s clinical tone and case management model. She offers ongoing advisory support on emotional safety, language, and structure.
ELIAV FRIEDMAN
Clinical Advisor
Eliav Friedman, MSW, is a therapist and educator who works with families navigating trauma and emotional crisis. At Krovim, he advises on case structure, family dynamics, and clinical best practices, helping ensure our programming stays attuned to real emotional needs.
How We Help
Emotional Support
When life becomes overwhelming, having someone who truly understands makes a world of difference.
We offer:
-
Ongoing check-ins with professionals
-
Guidance and support
-
Listening without judgment
-
Safe spaces to breathe
-
Mothers’, fathers’ and sibling support programs
Our goal: to help you feel held, heard, and never alone.
Social
Support
Close connections can change everything.
We create community through:
-
Parent circles
-
Sibling clubs
-
Workshops
-
Support groups
-
Special events throughout the year
Every program is designed to reduce isolation and help families find strength together.
Practical
Support
Sometimes the most loving thing we can do is take one thing off your plate.
We offer:
-
Warm meals during especially difficult times
-
Help with errands
-
Home support
-
Financial assistance around Chagim
-
Volunteers to come spend time with your children so you can have a moment to breathe.
Support that brings calm and stability back into your home.
Is Krovim the right fit for my family?
Glad you asked!
We are here for families in Israel who have a child or teen living with a chronic illness, medical complexity or physical disability.
Our focus is on the parents and siblings who carry day-to-day emotional and practical loads.
While we wish we could help everyone, we know that there are many other organizations that are already established and doing fantastic work to help those dealing with non-chronic illnesses like cancer. Thankfully there are many organizations that support developmental, psychological and emotional challenges as well.
What is a chronic illness?
A chronic illness is a health condition that doesn’t simply pass with time. It is ongoing, often long-term, and usually requires continuous care, management, and adaptation. For children, teens, and their families, this means learning how to live alongside a condition that may change day to day -- physically, emotionally, and practically.
Some chronic illnesses are visible, while many are invisible. A child may look “fine” on the outside while quietly managing pain, fatigue, medical treatments, hospital visits, or emotional stress. These challenges don’t exist in isolation. They affect school, friendships, family life, and a child’s sense of safety and belonging.
Living with chronic illness often brings uncertainty. There may be good days and hard days, progress and setbacks. Families may find themselves navigating medical systems, advocating for their child, and adjusting expectations, all while trying to create a sense of normalcy and stability.
At Krovim, we understand that chronic illness is not just a medical experience — it is a human one. It impacts the whole family and can feel isolating without the right support. Our community exists to ensure that children and families facing chronic illness feel seen, held, and supported — not just in managing their condition, but in living full, connected lives alongside it.
What is a physical disability?
Physical disabilities affect how a child moves, uses their body, or navigates the physical world around them. These challenges may be present from birth, develop over time, or result from illness or injury. For some children, physical disabilities are stable; for others, they may change and require ongoing adaptation, therapy, or rehabilitation.
A physical disability may impact mobility, strength, coordination, or endurance. Many children rely on assistive devices such as wheelchairs, braces, walkers, or prosthetics, while others participate in long-term therapies to build or maintain independence. These supports are not limitations — they are tools that help children access daily life, learning, play, and connection.
Beyond the physical realities, living with a physical disability can also shape a child’s emotional and social experience. Navigating accessibility, feeling different from peers, or managing frequent appointments can be isolating without understanding and support. Families often balance medical care, therapy schedules, and advocacy while striving to give their child a sense of confidence, dignity, and belonging.
At Krovim, we recognize that physical disabilities affect more than movement — they touch every part of a child’s world. Our community is here to support children and families with warmth, practical help, and connection, ensuring they are not facing these challenges alone and that every child is supported in living a full, engaged life within their community.
Helpful Resources &
Referral Partners
.jpg)
.jpg)
For Mental Health &
Emotional Support
For Medical Navigation &
Health Rights
-
Briut Hanefesh
For Short Term Critical Illness Parental Support
-
LaLechet Imcham (for families coping with crisis)
-
Mercaz L’Chizuk Mishpachot (various regional family support centers)