Amichai, a nonprofit Israeli association for the welfare of people with developmental disabilities, was established in 1994 in the town of Hod HaSharon in central Israel. Its founders, themselves parents of children with severe developmental disabilities, contending with an acute scarcity of services for this special population, were determined to create a supportive environment in which their children, and others like them, could grow and thrive.
Based on principles of full inclusion in normative society, and maximum independence leading to meaningful and fulfilling lives for people with developmental disabilities , Amichai and its services strive to address the needs of the entire life cycle of its target population: from early childhood through the school years to adolescence, and on to adulthood, maturity and old age.