' Israel Story' is one of the most popular national radio shows in Israel. Many call it the local 'This American Life.' In their Valentine's Day special, they bring the hour-long story of Chaya Ben Baruch.
Chaya grew up as Enid, in a traditional Jewish family in Far Rockaway, N.Y. Midway through college, she left that world behind to study sea otters in Fairbanks, Alaska.
Fast-forward a decade: Enid is now married to a nice Catholic salmon fisher named Stan. She’s just given birth to her sixth child, and discovers he has Down syndrome. Many parents in her position would be devastated. Some might place their baby in an institution, or put them up for adoption. For Enid, the birth of Angkor started her and her family on an incredible journey—to Tzfat, Israel, and from there to court rooms, hospitals, ultra-Orthodox yeshivas, and wedding halls, all so she could do right by her child and the other special-needs children she picked up along the way.
At the center of the story is the most unusual and unpredictable love affair you've heard in a while.