Female members of the charitable organization the Orthodox Society of the Destitute Sick pose for a photograph in 1924 during a meeting in Jerusalem’s Old City. The Christian organization aimed to provide compassionate care for the bedridden and disabled. It was founded that same year by the visionary Palestinian Christian Katherine Hanania Siksek, who sits at the center in the middle row, along with a group of like-minded friends.1
The institution was formally registered as the Orthodox Invalid’s Home Charitable Society and commonly referred to as “the Malja” or “Malja Madam Siksek” (malja meaning shelter). In 1940, Siksek expanded her mission by establishing the Four Homes of Mercy, which continues to operate to this day as a residential care facility serving individuals with severe neurological and physical disabilities.2
The photo is also significant because it was taken by the Palestinian photographer Khalil Raad, as evidenced by his professional stamp in the lower right-hand corner (see Khalil Raad and Khalil Raad's Lens: Scenes from Pre-Nakba Palestine).