A miracle occurred over the weekend at the Zichron Menachem camp in Cyprus. Romy Shoham, an 18-year-old girl with cancer who has been paralyzed for over a year, attended the week-long getaway and within two days was walking – and even running.
Zichron Menachem, an organization that supports cancer patients under age 25 as well as their families, offers special retreats for children being treated for cancer where, for a week, children “can leave the hospital, leave their parents, get away from the sad looks people give them because they may be bald, and just enjoy being a kid” said co-founder and chairman of the camp Chaim Ehrental.
Although these camps are often seen as places of miracles, Romy’s case was one of a kind. After battling cancer for five years – Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma in 2016 and then Hodgkin’s Lymphoma in 2019 – Romy is clearly a fighter. In January, she was partially paralyzed and used a wheelchair daily. While she attended rehabilitation often, she could not walk independently and was very weak.
Her progress over the past few years had been slow and her parents constantly tried to motivate her to keep battling her illness. “I always told her to work on the power of positive thinking and trying to have a good mental well-being, but I know it’s easier said than done,” said Romy’s father, Noam Shoham. Yet just last week while at the summer camp trip in Cyprus, Romy was up and walking, and even participating in a complicated ropes course.
The trip took off from Jerusalem on Thursday June 17; on Sunday, Romy’s parents received a video from the trip of their daughter being active without any help. Claudia and Noam described it as a miracle, for just a few months earlier, she needed help standing up and walking. They said they couldn’t help but sob with joy when they saw pictures and video footage of Romy that day.
Chaim said that stories like Romy’s are not uncommon for Zichron Menachem trips – and that it is proof that the camp’s mission is working. “The doctors take care of the body while we deal with the mind and spirit. If a child is happy and their well-being is taken care of, it brings the body more strength to fight the disease,” he said. And that indeed seems to be the case for Romy and countless other kids.
“She is such an amazing girl, with so many opportunities,” said Romy’s parents. They expressed that the joy Zichron Menachem brings their daughter helps her in more ways than simply offering fun memories.
Speaking of the trips and the revitalization it provides her, Romy said “The trips give me joy and while I am there I don’t suffer. The best thing about the trip is the people I meet and the friends who stand by my side through everything.” Romy added that Zichron Menachem encourages and supports her through her cancer journey and that she feels that the camp has built her to be who she is today.
Started in 1990 by Chaim and Miri Ehrental after their son, Menachem, died of leukemia at the age of 15, Zichron Menachem became a safe haven that they wished they had had during their own experience with their son. Any family is welcomed with open arms, regardless of their religion.