I wanted to share with you our story, we are a normative family from the center of the country. We work and provide for and take care of our four children as much as we can. Some time ago I was fired from my job due to a medical problem I had and so I went to sign for unemployment for a few months until I found another job. After a few months of looking for work, we received a letter from Bank Leumi that we were behind on a small number of mortgage payments, and we immediately received an eviction order from our home. All our proposals did not help to reach a logical arrangement with the bank, one that we could meet. They decided to adopt the policy of Jacob HaDin on the Mount. Unfortunately, my wife contacted Paamonim five days before the date of the eviction from her home through the organization’s Facebook page:
“A few days ago I saw on the various current affairs programs on television channels the story of Bank Leumi and Nochi Dankner and the erasure of its debts, and I couldn’t help but empathize.
My husband was fired from his job due to medical problems, and as a result we used the unemployment benefits to which he was entitled. Unfortunately, the allowance, which was only 4,000 shekels, was not enough for anything but the survival of food, and together with my salary, this was what we aspired to: food for our four children. As a result, the mortgage came back over the months (11 months) and here we found ourselves with an eviction that is supposed to happen on the 22nd. All our efforts to reach an agreement with Bank Leumi failed… We offered to pay NIS 30,000 and spread out payments of NIS 1,000 every month for 3 years in addition to the mortgage, but the bank stands its ground, claiming that it is not willing to reach a compromise even though we did not ask for debt erasure. Needless to say, the high debt is due to the NIS 10,000 fee for the bank’s lawyer, in addition to the interest charged by the state.
We, my husband and I, are now working with dignity and trying to raise our heads despite the difficulties that have been created, but the opacity turns out to be greater than we thought. We are very desperate.
We contacted everyone but have not yet received an answer. I’ll ask for your help.”
A few hours later, Didi, the organization’s spokesman, called us to see how we could help as soon as possible. First, he matched us with Yoni Cohen, a professional consultant at Paamonim, who heard at length the problem we were in, and with good advice gave us immediate instructions on what to do with the bank, what to be flexible about, and especially what not to.
At the same time, Didi received our consent to publish the story in the media. From here, our story took a dramatic turn. That very evening I was interviewed by several media outlets, and together with me many people expressed their protest against the haircut to which a huge tycoon is entitled, but the small citizen is always screwed to the end.
A public and media storm began on social networks and by any other means, and that same evening Bank Leumi issued an announcement that it was “freezing the process” regarding the erasure of the debt to Dankner. It still hasn’t helped us.
The next day, we met with representatives of the bank with Yoni’s advice from Paamonim and tried to reach a final compromise. Once again, it is important for me to emphasize: we did not ask for any “deletion”. Only a logical arrangement for the return of payments. Despite the heavy pressure and Bank Leumi’s attempt at the outset to get off the tree of erasing the debt to Dankner, the bank’s representatives who stood before us did not agree to our proposal. We stood helpless for only four days before we were evacuated from our home. The next day there was another article and more public and media pressure on the bank, and suddenly, the long-awaited turnaround began. The bank decided to be “sensitive,” as it put it.
He would not have shown sensitivity had he not been helped by the heavy pressures exerted on him and in which we were privileged to participate.
Finally, after we reached a logical agreement with the bank and to our delight we stayed at home and the execution order was cancelled just before it went into effect, we wrote again on Paamonim’s Facebook page:
“They say that the righteous and angels are in heaven… It turns out that here on Earth too, there are quite a few angels, and you are at the head…
There are no words that could describe our feelings and the thanks we owe to organizing paamonim… In the days of darkness and pain, when all the doors close and the confusion and uncertainty surrounds us, you were there… With the warm words, the never-ending encouragement and the accompaniment that never stopped. You are the ones who let the pained and worried souls rest a bit….
Yoni, who advised us at every moment and we won his right to help, gave us a lot of thanks.
And above all, for me we had as a friend and brother and without him the sky would be darker and blacker.
We, the middle-class people who have known good days and aspire to better days, will be at your service at any moment and will help anyone who wants
Thank you very much and with love.
