Ken Lazaken – For the Advancement of the Rights of the Elderly is a volunteer-based Israeli nonprofit, founded in 2004 by a group of social workers to protect and advance the rights of older adults — both for the individual and through public policy. Our work is carried out by some 50 retired professionals and guided by a board of advisers of lawyers, physicians, social workers and academics. At the heart of our work is the Center for Achieving Seniors’ Rights, a 24-hour hotline staffed by volunteer lawyers, accountants, social workers, physicians and former senior staff of the National Insurance Institute. The hotline operates in Hebrew and in Russian, so that seniors can discuss complex matters in their own language. Callers receive free, personal guidance on pensions and National Insurance entitlements, health and long-term nursing care, insurance claims, municipal tax and transportation discounts, employing a caregiver, and other essentials of daily living. To date more than 70,000 seniors — among them 3,500 Holocaust survivors — have been helped, and over NIS 600 million in benefits has been secured for or returned to elderly citizens of Israel. Alongside individual casework we press for systemic change: promoting legislation and regulation, working with government ministries, appealing to the media, and petitioning the Supreme Court when necessary. Our achievements include compelling private insurers to honor National Insurance Institute assessments, securing automatic transportation and municipal-tax discounts for retirees (saving Jerusalem’s seniors some NIS 20 million a year), and challenging discrimination between groups of Holocaust survivors. At the community level we hold events around the country teaching seniors and their families how to claim what is rightfully theirs. Ken Lazaken received the Speaker of the Knesset Prize (2014) for its work on behalf of the elderly, and the “Seal of Effectiveness” from the Midot organization.