Yonatan Box from Haifa, who was injured in Barnoer, just wants to live a normal life, like everyone else

Yonatan Box, 27 years old, was injured in the shooting incident at 'Barnoer' in Tel Aviv in 2009 and was left paralyzed in his lower body. Coping with such a reality imposed on a teenage boy is not easy to say the least, and over the years since then Box has struggled to be independent and lead a life as full as he could.

But even when it seems that the situation is relatively working out and a routine is forming in his life, unexpected situations come up that keep coming back and piling up difficulties that impair it in a severe and frustrating way. That's exactly what happened a few days ago.

Jonathan had a wheelchair that allowed him to move from place to place, but the chair broke and he does not have the necessary amount to repair it or to buy a new one in its place.

This wheelchair allowed Jonathan to move around relatively easily within his home and also to go out and conduct himself outside the home independently. Now that it was broken, Jonathan had to use an old chair he had, which was cumbersome and much larger than the one he had before. Even inside his house he cannot now move between the rooms...

The attack in Barnoer

As I recall, in 2009, on the night of the month of August, a shooting occurred at the "Barnoer" club in Tel Aviv, a meeting and support place for LGBTQ youth, the purpose of which, among other things, is to be a warm home and a safe envelope for them in dealing with difficulties. Nir Katz and Liz Trubishi were murdered. Nine teenagers were injured, their son Box. Over the years, Yonatan struggled to have his home in Neve Shanan in Haifa adapted to his injury and tried as hard as he could to form an independent lifestyle.

The beginning was difficult

Box was 14 years old when he was injured. A healthy teenager, with his whole future ahead of him, found himself disabled in a wheelchair, with his future uncertain. "The beginning was very difficult," says Box, "you have to understand that the previous life is over and will not return, and the dreams I had as a healthy person, I will no longer be able to fulfill them. After I was injured, the state compensated me with several hundred thousand shekels and I invested all the money in an apartment. It was not enough, I still have loans on the apartment. The state did not recognize me as a victim of hostilities, and this greatly affected my situation. Along the way, what really helped me were the residents. Sometimes a kind word from someone who sees your difficulty and appreciates your efforts is enough. Not to mention People who opened their hearts and pockets and helped me. I don't know where I would be today without these donations."

The suicide of the late Chen Langer

"One of the biggest difficulties I am dealing with is the suicide of another wounded in Barnoer, the late Chen Langer. 4 months before he ended his life we ​​sat in a cafe, talked and laughed. He told me he was in a relationship, I thought he was doing really well... and then he did what he did. It's not the physical part of the injury, it's the mental part. What does it do to you to be disabled and not know how you will manage financially. Sometimes I feel like I'm exactly where Chen was when he killed himself. This opacity towards us is very difficult."

He continues: "When I hear myself talk about it," he says now, "it annoys me that I sound poor. I'm not poor, I have a disability and I've learned to live with it, it's definitely a very hard blow to deal with in adolescence, so I don't understand why make it even more difficult for me. The cost of my chair is around NIS 25. My chair allows me to move easily between the rooms in the house and also to go outside, go to work, to entertainment, like anyone else."

want to deal in the future

"All I want is to live at a reasonable standard of living," he explains, "I want to deal with my future and not every 3-4 months to be busy with the fact that one of my devices is destroyed and how I will be able to afford to repair it. I think it is unreasonable to have all these worries and the need to accept Donations. I wish there was a solution to this."

"The wheel on my chair bent and came out of place so that it is no longer possible to use the chair. The chair I have at home has no tires around the wheel and no brakes. This morning I woke up and wanted to get ready for work. I tried to move from the bed to the wheelchair, but because it has no brakes, it moved forward when I held it and fell on The floor. Of course I couldn't get up. I had no choice, I had to call my parents to come help me up. Luckily I had my cell phone with me."

I'm not looking for luxury

"All last weekend I sat at home like a poor man, he says, "A few thousand shekels to fix the chair is not something easy for me to get. I'm not complaining, but National Insurance gives us 5,000 NIS every 5 years and that's not enough. The chair I use in the bath is also nearing the end of its life. It's very difficult, I've been working part-time for 4 years at National Insurance and receive a disability allowance, But it doesn't come close to what is needed to finance the expenses for the wheelchairs. It's really frustrating, I'm not looking for luxury, something basic that will give me a minimal quality of life."

want to dance

Box is not currently in a relationship, but he really hopes that in the future that too will come. He wants to go back to dancing, as he could with the wheelchair that was destroyed. "I can't do anything with this chair, certainly not dance," he says sadly. "What am I asking for, a normal wheelchair, so that I can go back to doing actions that everyone does easily, and for me it's not that easy."