The renovation of the Kochav Hashachar Mikvah is well underway and scheduled to be completed by Chanuka 2022! Please partner with us and help us raise the amount we need to complete the Mikvah in a timely manner.
The community of Kochav Hashachar has grown in leaps and bounds. This incredible growth brings with it the responsibility to maintain not only the physical needs of our community but its spiritual needs as well.
The Women’s Mikvah, one of our community's most basic spiritual needs, was built 38 years ago.
Why we began renovations:
1. Size: The community has grown, and there was a shortage of preparation rooms. There were 4 preparation rooms, only 2 of which had full bathrooms, for 450 families!
2. Preparation for Tevila: There are many women in the community who were not comfortably able to prepare at home because they live in a caravan or small homes with little privacy. A primary reason for renovating was to create a pleasant and beautiful Mikvah where women can also prepare and enjoy the important mitzvah of tevila.
3. Waiting Room: The old Mikvah had no waiting room, just one small entryway which functioned as the waiting room, entrance, and exit for the Mikvah.
4. Hygiene: There was improper ventilation in the old Mikvah building. This led to condensation and mold, which caused a severe lack of basic hygiene.
5. Infrastructure: There was constant leakage, low water pressure, and no adequate response from the Regional Council due to a lack of government funds to provide a long-term solution to the problems.
6. Accessibility and Parking: There was no designated parking lot, no privacy for the women walking to the Mikvah, and no complete solution for handicap accessibility.
7. General Conditions: The wasn't enough storage in the old structure, and the Balaniyot needed to go outside the building to a shed to get essential items such as towels.
Renovations have already begun!
The new mikvah is scheduled to be completed by Chanuka 2022 and includes:
- Four preparation rooms with full bathrooms, one of which will be a Kallah preparation room
- A comfortable and discreet waiting room, in addition to an entry/exit hall
- A complete upgrade of the infrastructure, sewage line, and electricity
- A sink for netilat yadayim near the Mikvah Pool for women whose minhag it is to wash their hands before Tevila
- Improvements to the building’s ventilation based on professional plans from an engineer who specializes in Mikvas in Israel
- A discreet parking lot
- New, discreet pathways to the mikvah, which has become a busy and central location over the years.
-Full handicap accessibility to the building and throughout the Mikvah structure
