Mind the Tech NY
“More than 60,000 children have passed through the Shanti House”
Mariuma Klein, founder of The Shanti House, spoke at the Yazamiyot female entrepreneurship event at Calcalist and Leumi’s Mind the Tech New York 2026 conference. “To all the women here – if you want to start ventures and make it happen, you have to understand that the power lies in your ability to accept, and in the passion for what we do.”
Mariuma Klein
(Reyan Preuss, Tomeriko)
“I’m going to talk about what’s called The Shanti House,, and I’ve been doing it for 42 years. I was born in New York, and my childhood in Israel wasn’t easy at all. But I took all the traumas and the hurt I went through – and I called them by every possible name. In 1984, when I started dealing with the children in Israel, they didn’t have a home. ‘Street children’ was not a familiar concept at that time. During our 42 years of work, we were almost the only ones in Israel who cared for at-risk children who had been sexually, mentally and physically abused, and neglected. If I hadn’t been there myself, I wouldn’t have found an ounce of pleasure in it. But I took the bad things and turned them into the understanding that you can create something good for yourself and for others,” said Mariuma Klein, founder of the Shanti House, at the Yazamiyot female entrepreneurship event at Calcalist and Leumi’s New York 2026 Mind the Tech conference.
"I think one of the strongest things that helped me succeed as an entrepreneur in this field in Israel was the fact that I didn't listen to others. Everything I wanted to do, I started doing with the understanding that you have to be a dreamer, and believe in your dream. You can't make dreams come true alone. Helping children is a big dream, but if you take people like you and unite the dream together - you can achieve an even bigger dream.
“To all the women here - if you want to start projects and make it happen, you must understand that the power lies in your ability to accept, and in the passion for what we do. The power of 'Shanti House’ lies in the fact that more than 60,000 children have passed through us. I saved my life by doing this for myself and for others.
"It's important for me to tell you that sometimes when we succeed and we become founders, we forget to stay humble and learn more about life. We have to know that we couldn't do it alone. There are people with us who are doing and helping.
"We have very big difficulties in the world right now. We are a non-profit organization, and the young people in Israel, after the October 7 attacks and after the coronavirus, are experiencing a severe shock. This war is very violent. There is a lot of violence that comes from not talking inside the homes. We need to do big things in Israel to restore balance, to make them feel safe and belong, in a place where they can breathe and not destroy themselves.
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“The fact that I am standing here today is to tell you - when you succeed, that is your test in front of the world. You must help others as you helped yourself to succeed. If you focus only on yourself, you may succeed, but that is not the real success of doing the right thing and saving souls and people.”
