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In a moving ceremony held over the past week in Sderot, a Holstic Mobile Unit in memory of Amit Mann was launched. Amit Mann was a paramedic who chose to stay in the clinic of Kibbutz Be'eri on October 7, and continue to treat the wounded under fire until her last moments. In a ceremony that transformed from mourning to renewal, her family members, friends and medical personnel gathered at the launch event, with the aim of initiating a journey of healing born out of great pain.
"The idea for the mobile clinic was born out of an urgent and painful need," shares Lena Shtern, chairwomen of the Yuri Stern Holistic Center. "During a tour we conducted in the Gaza border about a year ago, we saw with our own eyes what words cannot express - people who experienced a trauma that has no name, who need assistance that goes beyond words. They need touch that brings the body and soul back to a place of safety."
The mobile unit, which has already begun its activity, travels between the communities on the Gaza border, the North of Israel, and places where displaced residents are located. At each stop, the volunteers set up a temporary treatment complex that provides between 40 and 50 free holistic treatments - shiatsu, reflexology, acupuncture and other methods for stress relief and trauma treatment.
A connection that comes from the heart
A pivotal moment in the project's establishment was the meeting between Shtern and Rachel Mann, Amit's mother. "When I met Rachel, I met a quiet hero," Shtern recounts with sparkling eyes. "She lay on our treatment bed, and I saw how the touch brought color back to her face. In that moment, I knew - the mobile unit had to bear Amit's name. It was a natural and deep connection, as if Amit herself guided us to each other."
"Amit was all about giving," Rachel says in describing her daughter, "She chose to stay in Be'eri to treat the wounded, even though she could have chosen otherwise. To memorialize her through a project that is all about helping and alleviating suffering - nothing could be more fitting."
The day before the massacre, Amit visited her mother in Netivot, a visit that retrospectively became a final farewell. During the meeting, a chilling moment occurred - Rachel, who had never asked her daughter to cancel shifts, felt an inexplicable inner feeling and asked her not to return to the kibbutz.
Finally, as Amit stood in the elevator on her way out of the building, her mother suddenly called out to her, gave her a prolonged hug, and recounted all the things she had accomplished in her short life - as if she knew it was the last time she would see her daughter."
Mary, Amit's sister, stands next to the blue mobile vehicle bearing her sister's name in white letters. "My sister dedicated her entire life to seeing others," she says, smiling a wistful smile. "Already at the age of 15, she began volunteering at Magen David Adom. This mobile unit is a direct continuation of her path. Every person who receives the healing touch also receives something from her. It's as if her hands continue to heal."
A hero until her final moments
Amit arrived at Kibbutz Be'eri following a special invitation: a year and a half before the murderous Hamas attack, when the position of on-call paramedic became available at the kibbutz – a dream job with an apartment, salary, and good conditions.
Senior medic Aviya (Abuya) Hatzeroni, who also was murdered on October 7, insisted that no one was more suitable for the role than her. He had known her since she was 14 and began volunteering at Magen David Adom and was like a grandfather to her. In Be'eri, Amit flourished, being part of a supportive and loving community.
In her final hours, Amit displayed unparalleled courage and professionalism. At seven in the morning, when the sirens began, her partner Ofir asked her to come with him to Netivot, but she refused, saying: "It is precisely because it is dangerous that I need to be here," her older sister Haviva told Ynet reporter, Eitan Gefen.
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For many long hours, while terrorists besieged the clinic, she treated the wounded, called Magen David Adom in a desperate attempt to get help, and maintained exemplary composure. Even when the defenders at the clinic's entrances ran out of ammunition, and even after she herself was injured by gunfire, she continued to care for the wounded and communicate with her family.
Yair Avital, one of the wounded who were treated by Amit and survived that terrible day, recounted after his recovery that when there was nothing more she could do medically - when he needed an operating room and blood transfusions that were not available - she continued to encourage him.
As he lay on the floor, she placed a helmet under his head to make him more comfortable, gave him water, and took care of him. "In the darkest place possible," he testified, "she remained true to herself until the very last moment."
Touching the pain, bringing relief
At the launch event of the mobile Unit in memory of the courageous paramedic, the band 'Knesiyat Hasekhel' (from Hebrew: "The Mind Church") - whose members are residents of Sderot, preformed, adding a musical touch to the ceremony. The president's wife, Michal Herzog, also sent her warm wishes to the Mann family and the Yuri Shtern Holistic Center.
"The holistic mobile unit does not replace psychological or medical treatment, but complements it," explains Lena Shtern. "We provide moments of relief, of reconnection to the body. Sometimes, after trauma, people disconnect from their bodies. Touch brings them back, reminds them that they are here, that they are safe."
Professor Hagai Levin, chairman of the Israel Association of Public Health Physicians and a volunteer physician on the Hostages' Staff, added: "What did we learn from Amit Mann? We learned that body and soul are connected, and you cannot treat one without the other. Amit heard the bells ringing and saved lives, even at the cost of her own. The volunteers here hear that same ringing - and come to the communities to help. Even in this great darkness, we can see the light."
The Yuri Shtern Holistic Center is not new to the therapeutic landscape in Israel. It was established in 2007 in memory of Knesset member Dr. Yuri Shtern, who died from cancer. The center was founded at the initiative of his widow, Lena Shtern, family members and friends, and since its establishment it has treated, accompanied and supported tens of thousands of people coping with cancer."
From this rich experience and the urgency of the current situation, in September 2024 the center began operating the "Recovery Gate" project, which is divided into two complementary tracks: a permanent clinic in the city of Sderot, operating twice a week in partnership with the Sderot Resilience Center, providing subsidized touch therapies to residents of the area; and the Holistic Mobile Unit project in memory of Amit Mann, in which volunteers go to various places in the country to treat victims of the war."
"We work in collaboration with Resilience centers and welfare organizations in the South and North," concludes Shtern. "And this is a personal invitation from me - we will reach anyone who needs us. Amit's values and dedication are a guiding light for us in this project. Because in times like these, sometimes a single touch can make all the difference."