Mimi ‘Mabrat’ Biyadgilon: The former village girl who has come a long way

Mimi Biyadgilon's journey from a village in Ethiopia to becoming a social worker in Israel is a testament to resilience and the impact of supportive interventions. Arriving in Israel in 1991 during Operation Solomon, which airlifted over 14,000 Ethiopian Jews, Biyadgilon was 14 years old. She recalled a childhood in Ethiopia marked by simple chores, like fetching water, and the walk to school through green fields. However, their emigration plans led to an abrupt end to their schooling and a difficult nine-month period in Addis Ababa.

After settling in Israel, the family spent 18 months in an absorption center in Ashdod. Biyadgilon's father, who had been a jeweler, became ill and never worked in Israel. The family's financial situation was precarious, living on a "bare minimum." Adding to the distress, her parents divorced, and her father quickly remarried and moved to another city, leaving Mimi's mother to raise eight children. The siblings took on various cleaning and restaurant jobs during summers to help make ends meet.

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Financially, we lived on a bare minimum

A turning point came with the support of a Hebrew-speaking social worker who visited their home. This social worker not only aided their mother but also encouraged the children to maintain contact with their ailing father. Biyadgilon found this social worker's kindness and positive approach deeply motivating, attributing her later decision to become a social worker to this experience. The family's resilience was also bolstered by their mother's strength and encouragement to study. Ultimately, Mimi and her siblings attended boarding schools, with Mimi assigned to a school in Arad.

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She was a very strong woman who always encouraged her children to study