Ten years ago, UJA-Federation of New York, the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, and top Israeli officials collaborated to launch Ashalim, a nonprofit organization in Israel that plans and develops services for more than 350,000 children and youth, and their families. Ashalim plans activities aimed at increasing community and family support for at-risk youth, providing them with the best treatment and care.

On June 1, 2008, the Ashalim Professional Exchange, comprising 13 mental-health and community service professionals from UJA-Federation of New York's beneficiary agencies, went on a five-day visit to learn from and share their expertise with professionals in Israel from Ashalim and the Israel Trauma Coalition (ITC) , both supported by UJA-Federation. This year, the Ashalim Professional Exchange focused on a professional conference, visits within the educational system, and Ashalim and ITC programs in Sderot. Led by UJA-Federation's Caring Commission, participants included representatives from Board of Jewish Education of Greater New York, The Educational Alliance, F.E.G.S. Health and Human Services System, Jewish Board of Family and Children's Services, the Jewish Child Care Association of New York, Samuel Field Y, and Westchester Jewish Community Services. Shelley said, "One of the issues that was brought home to the group during their meetings in Israel was how difficult it is for therapists and other caretakers, who themselves are living the experience of terror and war, to be able to function and provide care." This, she said, was seen in their visit to Sderot and to the north, where professionals talked about their experiences during the Second Lebanon War.

The delegation visited Kibbutz Gevim, outside of Sderot, to learn about an Ashalim program that uses a stuffed chibuki, or "huggy bear," as part of a short-term intervention method developed originally for children in the north during and after the Second Lebanon War. Ashalim professionals have reported that most of the children who received the chibuki showed a decline in anxiety symptoms.

Joyce Kevelson, associate vice president of behavioral health services at F.E.G.S., is a fourth-time participant in the Ashalim Professional Exchange. "I feel privileged that I was able to participate," said Joyce. "The visit was extremely well organized, and what we learned and discussed was very relevant to our work in New York City and Long Island, areas that are very prone to violence." At the conference, Joyce presented her work with dialectical behavior therapy, which helps regulate children's emotions. Linda Payne of the Jewish Board of Family and Children's Services said she was interested in learning and comparing how Israelis address and cope with ongoing continuous trauma.