Background and History
ELI was founded in 1979 by Dr. Hanita Zimrin of blessed memory, and is now led by Eran Zimrin. ELI’s mission is to protect Israel’s children and break the intergenerational cycle of abuse through a broad spectrum of services, including crisis intervention, emergency hot line, therapy, prevention programs in schools, professional education, and community awareness.
Dr. Zimrin built ELI into a successful NGO despite being told that there was no need for their services. Part of what kept her going were the calls from adults who had been abused as children who said, “where were you when I needed you years ago?!” A pediatrician once said, “Before Dr. Zimrin came to speak at our hospital, we had no cases of abuse, but since that time, we have had a number of cases!” In its earlier years, ELI was known for helping to develop the language and field of child abuse, along with training countless professionals.
To advance its mission and have maximal impact, ELI offers services at a single point-of-entry, creating a large safety net that reduces the possibility of clients missing potential benefits. ELI tailors services to meet the cultural diversity within Israel, thus working with Ethiopian, Russian, Ukrainian and other new immigrant communities, Ultra- Orthodox, special-needs populations and others.
ELI has been a leader in empowering women and helping to create social change since its inception by investing in mothers and helping to break the intergenerational cycle of family violence thus enabling them to protect their children and to serve as strong anchors in their families.
ELI’s primary services are therapeutic intervention and creating awareness of child abuse. ELI is unique in treating all kinds of child abuse, physical, emotional, sexual, cyber and neglect. ELI invests in preventive education that includes teaching parenting skills in order to break the cycle of abuse. ELI’s pioneering work has broken through social taboos, bureaucratic hurdles and social and cultural opposition in order to help thousands of victims.
Eran Zimrin, CEO
Eran Zimrin
Soon after Hanita’s passing in May 2021, Eran Zimrin, MBA, was appointed as ELI’s CEO for a seamless transition of leadership. As Hanita’s son, ELI truly was always part of his life. “Hardly a day went by without our mother sharing with us the successes and challenges of her work on behalf of Israel’s abused children, she also engaged us in strategic discussions about the organization and solicited our opinions where appropriate,” said Eran.
Eran brought more than 30 years of success in business to this position, having started and managed two for-profit enterprises, in textiles and insurance. After Hanita passed away, Eran knew that he wanted to use his business expertise to ensure her legacy in protecting children and to realize the dreams that she did not get to fulfill. ” I wanted real hands-on involvement to continue making the kind of impact that my mother did.”
In addition to Eran’s passion for and familiarity with the organization, and his business experience, he is very active politically in Israel and uses these connections for the benefit of the children of ELI as we confront today’s challenges and prepare for the future.