The Story of Yerucham
Name: Yerucham appears in the Bible as a personal name, and in the list of the cities of Judea conquered by King Shishak of Egypt in the 10th century BCE. Arabic tradition identifies the ancient well near the town with the well revealed to Hagar when expelled with Ishmael by Abraham (Genesis 21). The origin of the modern name is from the Arabic: Bir Rahma (meaning “well of mercy”) and Tel-Rahma. Additional names (before Yerucham) include Tel-Yerucham and Kfar Yerucham.
Address: Situated in the Northern Negev, Yerucham is located 15 km from Dimona at an elevation of 520 meters above sea level. Yerucham enjoys the clean air and a dry climate (110 mm average annual precipitation), with many warm and sunny desert days. Only 29 km south of Be'er Sheva, Yerucham is becoming an attractive “bedroom suburb” of the Negev’s capital, because of the quality of life it can offer – peace and quiet, good climate, beautiful scenery, inexpensive housing, and a warm, welcoming community. Some natural and historical attractions near Yerucham are the Large Makhtesh to the east, and, to the west, the Yerucham Lake Park and Nabatean-Byzantine fortress of ancient Yerucham.
Age: Yerucham was founded in January 1951, but it appears younger, perhaps because of the rapid development and new look acquired over the past years. Some of the recent additions include a well-maintained and landscaped main street, lovely new neighborhoods, expanded industrial zones, a renovated commercial center and weekly market, and beautiful public buildings such as the Matnas (Community Center) and Public Library
Claim to Fame: Yerucham was the first ma’abara (immigrant transit camp) located far from the center of the country and far from any existing urban centers. Yerucham eventually became one of the first development towns in the Negev built in the heart of the desert.
Family: The first arrivals to Yerucham were olim (immigrants) from Romania, many of them Holocaust survivors, followed by olim from North Africa, Persia, India and elsewhere, who make up the majority of the towns’ population today (appr. 40%, 5%, 20%, 10% respectively). Since autumn 1990, Yerucham is actively involved in absorbing hundreds of olim from the Former Soviet Union, who comprise 25% of the town’s nearly 10,000 residents. In recent years, young couples and families from other localities have moved to Yerucham, and some have purchased lots and built their homes in the town’s new neighborhoods. Members of the “Young People in Yerucham” Student Settlement Group are involved in local social action projects, organize cultural events for young people, and attract young people to settle in Yerucham. In fall 2008, the Ayalim Student Village opened in Yerucham for students in Negev institutions of higher education, who will live and volunteer in town.
Education: The Yerucham Local Council, together with the Ministry of Education and other bodies, invests many efforts and funds to advance education on all levels. There are also tens of kindergartens, nursery schools, and day care centers for about 800 pre-school children. Yerucham’s formal educational system includes 5 elementary schools (State-General and State-Religious, and 3 smaller Ultra-Orthodox schools), and a well-equipped comprehensive high school affiliated with ORT, where the successful “Anyone Can Do It” program has consistently raised the number of those eligible for Bagrut Matriculation certificates to twice the national level. All schools in Yerucham use GBS, an online system which enables pupils to work at home on material from school, thanks to a personal code. The “City Plays Music” program provides musical education to pupils in all the elementary schools, and organizes two orchestras for more advanced pupils.
Informal Education and Culture: The Yerucham MATNAS (Local Community Center) organizes many social and cultural activities which include plays, performances, summer events, subscription series for children and adults, music lessons in the Music Conservatory, sports activities and workout room in the renovated Sports Hall, nature-oriented extracurricular activities, neighborhood clubs, immigrant absorption activities, a Yiddish choir, and communal theater group. The beautiful library has 44,000 books in Hebrew, Russian, English, and Maharati (an Indian language), and offers enrichment activities for pre- and elementary school pupils, meetings with authors, computer training, workshops for parents and children, a creative writing group, and more.
The Youth Department of the MATNAS is responsible for the “Machsan 52” youth club, youth rock bands, two youth councils (older and younger) which organize activities for local youth, and for the Scouts (including Sea Scouts) and Bnai Akiva youth movements.
Midreshet Beyahad seminar center and youth hostel provides guided hikes, workshops, and other programming for visiting groups, mainly school pupils, as well as Jewish programming in local schools.
ATID BAMIDBAR R.A. initiated the “Teudat Zehut” (Yerucham Identity Card) project for community empowerment through documentation, and the BAMIDBAR Regional Center for Creative, Pluralistic Jewish Renewal. The association runs weekly programs of study and encounter integrating creative arts related to Jewish heritage for children, youth and adults of all backgrounds from Yerucham and all over the Negev, cultural and communal events, teacher training workshops, and special programs for visiting groups, as well as a communal archives and volunteer projects.
Welfare and Health Services: The Local Council’s Social Services Department, in cooperation with other organizations, runs family clubs, a center for adult training, a Family and Child Therapeutic Center, a Sheltered Factory for the physically and mentally challenged, a Day Center for Golden Agers and for the Blind, the Bet Havah afternoon enrichment club for children and youth with special needs, summer camps for children of families on welfare, and cultural, educational and welfare programs for all ages. In Yerucham there are two health clinics (Klalit and Maccabi), a drugstore, Magen David Adom station that has tens of volunteers of all ages, a Mother and Baby Clinic, a dental office, and a nighttime emergency medical service.
Employment Experience: The main employers are local and regional industry (53% of employed residents) and services and commerce (47%). Most of those employed in industry work in local factories such as Agis-Perrigo (Careline cosmetics and pharmaceuticals), Negev Ceramics, Phoenicia Glass, Brand Metals, Ackerstein, Yehu Clays, TTK electronics, Tempo, and more, some of which utilize raw materials from the region. The rest of those employed work in regional industries, such as Ramat Hovav, the Nuclear Research Center, and the Dead Sea Works, or in Beer Sheva, at the hospital, Ben-Gurion University or other institutions of higher education, in Dimona, and in Sde Boker. There is small industry (garages, catering, carpentry, etc.) in town. Yerucham has suffered in the past from high unemployment rates, although today the rate is lower than the national average. Yerucham faces the future optimistically, with plans for tourism development in the Lake Park and Large Makhtesh. Special professional training programs prepare young people for careers in computers, chemistry, engineering and other fields needed by industry. Local industrial zones have doubled in size and offer space for rental and construction.
Religious Services: Thanks to the Yerucham Religious Council and other bodies in town, there are services such as a mikveh, higher yeshivas, Torah classes, and the Hevra Kadisha (Burial Society). There are 27 synagogues in Yerucham, including central ones for the Indian, Persian, and Bukharan communities, where ethnic traditions are preserved.
Tourism: Yerucham is blessed with many unique communal and educational projects and programs and with a rich multi-cultural mosaic of people and places, which can be experienced by visiting local synagogues and meeting the residents, or tasting the ethnic delicacies of The Culinary Queens of Yerucham, who host visiting groups in their homes. The colorful weekly shuk (market), performances of local musical ensembles, and the works of local artists also provide an enriching experience. Two incredible natural wonders which attract tourists from Israel and abroad surround Yerucham: the Yerucham Lake Park to the west, and the Large Makhtesh to the east. The Lake is one of the largest in the country and has over 200 species of birds. The JNF and Local Council are jointly developing the Lake Park to include areas of nature preserves alongside boating, fishing, as well as cultural, educational, and water sports activities. The Naama Farm and Bedouin tourism initiatives also offer unique experiences of local agriculture and culture. The Yerucham Fortress on the Spice Road, Ein Yorkeam, and other nearby sites also offer breathtaking landscapes and hiking and cycling routes.
Address: Situated in the Northern Negev, Yerucham is located 15 km from Dimona at an elevation of 520 meters above sea level. Yerucham enjoys the clean air and a dry climate (110 mm average annual precipitation), with many warm and sunny desert days. Only 29 km south of Be'er Sheva, Yerucham is becoming an attractive “bedroom suburb” of the Negev’s capital, because of the quality of life it can offer – peace and quiet, good climate, beautiful scenery, inexpensive housing, and a warm, welcoming community. Some natural and historical attractions near Yerucham are the Large Makhtesh to the east, and, to the west, the Yerucham Lake Park and Nabatean-Byzantine fortress of ancient Yerucham.
Age: Yerucham was founded in January 1951, but it appears younger, perhaps because of the rapid development and new look acquired over the past years. Some of the recent additions include a well-maintained and landscaped main street, lovely new neighborhoods, expanded industrial zones, a renovated commercial center and weekly market, and beautiful public buildings such as the Matnas (Community Center) and Public Library
Claim to Fame: Yerucham was the first ma’abara (immigrant transit camp) located far from the center of the country and far from any existing urban centers. Yerucham eventually became one of the first development towns in the Negev built in the heart of the desert.
Family: The first arrivals to Yerucham were olim (immigrants) from Romania, many of them Holocaust survivors, followed by olim from North Africa, Persia, India and elsewhere, who make up the majority of the towns’ population today (appr. 40%, 5%, 20%, 10% respectively). Since autumn 1990, Yerucham is actively involved in absorbing hundreds of olim from the Former Soviet Union, who comprise 25% of the town’s nearly 10,000 residents. In recent years, young couples and families from other localities have moved to Yerucham, and some have purchased lots and built their homes in the town’s new neighborhoods. Members of the “Young People in Yerucham” Student Settlement Group are involved in local social action projects, organize cultural events for young people, and attract young people to settle in Yerucham. In fall 2008, the Ayalim Student Village opened in Yerucham for students in Negev institutions of higher education, who will live and volunteer in town.
Education: The Yerucham Local Council, together with the Ministry of Education and other bodies, invests many efforts and funds to advance education on all levels. There are also tens of kindergartens, nursery schools, and day care centers for about 800 pre-school children. Yerucham’s formal educational system includes 5 elementary schools (State-General and State-Religious, and 3 smaller Ultra-Orthodox schools), and a well-equipped comprehensive high school affiliated with ORT, where the successful “Anyone Can Do It” program has consistently raised the number of those eligible for Bagrut Matriculation certificates to twice the national level. All schools in Yerucham use GBS, an online system which enables pupils to work at home on material from school, thanks to a personal code. The “City Plays Music” program provides musical education to pupils in all the elementary schools, and organizes two orchestras for more advanced pupils.
Informal Education and Culture: The Yerucham MATNAS (Local Community Center) organizes many social and cultural activities which include plays, performances, summer events, subscription series for children and adults, music lessons in the Music Conservatory, sports activities and workout room in the renovated Sports Hall, nature-oriented extracurricular activities, neighborhood clubs, immigrant absorption activities, a Yiddish choir, and communal theater group. The beautiful library has 44,000 books in Hebrew, Russian, English, and Maharati (an Indian language), and offers enrichment activities for pre- and elementary school pupils, meetings with authors, computer training, workshops for parents and children, a creative writing group, and more.
The Youth Department of the MATNAS is responsible for the “Machsan 52” youth club, youth rock bands, two youth councils (older and younger) which organize activities for local youth, and for the Scouts (including Sea Scouts) and Bnai Akiva youth movements.
Midreshet Beyahad seminar center and youth hostel provides guided hikes, workshops, and other programming for visiting groups, mainly school pupils, as well as Jewish programming in local schools.
ATID BAMIDBAR R.A. initiated the “Teudat Zehut” (Yerucham Identity Card) project for community empowerment through documentation, and the BAMIDBAR Regional Center for Creative, Pluralistic Jewish Renewal. The association runs weekly programs of study and encounter integrating creative arts related to Jewish heritage for children, youth and adults of all backgrounds from Yerucham and all over the Negev, cultural and communal events, teacher training workshops, and special programs for visiting groups, as well as a communal archives and volunteer projects.
Welfare and Health Services: The Local Council’s Social Services Department, in cooperation with other organizations, runs family clubs, a center for adult training, a Family and Child Therapeutic Center, a Sheltered Factory for the physically and mentally challenged, a Day Center for Golden Agers and for the Blind, the Bet Havah afternoon enrichment club for children and youth with special needs, summer camps for children of families on welfare, and cultural, educational and welfare programs for all ages. In Yerucham there are two health clinics (Klalit and Maccabi), a drugstore, Magen David Adom station that has tens of volunteers of all ages, a Mother and Baby Clinic, a dental office, and a nighttime emergency medical service.
Employment Experience: The main employers are local and regional industry (53% of employed residents) and services and commerce (47%). Most of those employed in industry work in local factories such as Agis-Perrigo (Careline cosmetics and pharmaceuticals), Negev Ceramics, Phoenicia Glass, Brand Metals, Ackerstein, Yehu Clays, TTK electronics, Tempo, and more, some of which utilize raw materials from the region. The rest of those employed work in regional industries, such as Ramat Hovav, the Nuclear Research Center, and the Dead Sea Works, or in Beer Sheva, at the hospital, Ben-Gurion University or other institutions of higher education, in Dimona, and in Sde Boker. There is small industry (garages, catering, carpentry, etc.) in town. Yerucham has suffered in the past from high unemployment rates, although today the rate is lower than the national average. Yerucham faces the future optimistically, with plans for tourism development in the Lake Park and Large Makhtesh. Special professional training programs prepare young people for careers in computers, chemistry, engineering and other fields needed by industry. Local industrial zones have doubled in size and offer space for rental and construction.
Religious Services: Thanks to the Yerucham Religious Council and other bodies in town, there are services such as a mikveh, higher yeshivas, Torah classes, and the Hevra Kadisha (Burial Society). There are 27 synagogues in Yerucham, including central ones for the Indian, Persian, and Bukharan communities, where ethnic traditions are preserved.
Tourism: Yerucham is blessed with many unique communal and educational projects and programs and with a rich multi-cultural mosaic of people and places, which can be experienced by visiting local synagogues and meeting the residents, or tasting the ethnic delicacies of The Culinary Queens of Yerucham, who host visiting groups in their homes. The colorful weekly shuk (market), performances of local musical ensembles, and the works of local artists also provide an enriching experience. Two incredible natural wonders which attract tourists from Israel and abroad surround Yerucham: the Yerucham Lake Park to the west, and the Large Makhtesh to the east. The Lake is one of the largest in the country and has over 200 species of birds. The JNF and Local Council are jointly developing the Lake Park to include areas of nature preserves alongside boating, fishing, as well as cultural, educational, and water sports activities. The Naama Farm and Bedouin tourism initiatives also offer unique experiences of local agriculture and culture. The Yerucham Fortress on the Spice Road, Ein Yorkeam, and other nearby sites also offer breathtaking landscapes and hiking and cycling routes.