WINTER 2007
Dear Friends,
By the time you receive this quarterly newsletter, you will have already celebrated Christmas, and enjoyed all its activities. The year 2008 will have begun, and so may it be a year of peace, prosperity and good health to each and every one of you. Let us pray and hope that real peace and justice will eventually prevail in this troubled Holy Land and the sufferings of the innocent cease. May we at last see the light at the end of a long, dark and miserable tunnel.
New School Building
The good news is that on December 3rd, construction on the new
premises restarted after several months of interruption. Matters appear to be
running smoothly and hopefully they will continue. As for the interior, well, we
have already received donations to completely furnish the dormitory, the
kindergarten, the kitchen, the computer room, the Braille book production room,
the director's room, two classrooms and the assembly hall. This is a great
achievement and we owe it to your generosity. We are hoping to complete the
furnishing by the time we move in.
Construction well underway
International Day of the Disabled
Children and staff have all worked extremely hard right through the first term
of our scholastic year. But needless to say, that the month of December is
always very special; as it brings much pleasure and a great deal of
entertainment. The third of December, as recognized by the United Nations ever
since the year 1981, is celebrated throughout the world as the International Day
of the Disabled. Our children were invited to participate in an event held
especially for disabled children and organized by some local organizations
working in the field. They sang three songs in English and Arabic that the
audience enjoyed a great deal as we received lots of compliments and
encouragement.
The School's Christmas Party
This year we had to have our Christmas party rather early, as it coincided with
the Moslem feast of "Al-Adha". The Christmas party took place on December 15th.
To add to the children's excitement, we usually like to invite a few friends,
and we were delighted to have joining us, Rev. Colin Douglas the Locum Minister
of St. Andrew's Church in Jerusalem, Mr. Donald Marshall, the Programmes
Director at the Scots Hotel in Tiberias, his wife and daughter, and Mr. Chris
Strickland, a freelance photographer based for a few months in Bir Zeit. We had
also with us two of our former students; each is now married and has a family.
The young man, Ramzi, is from Gaza, he came to the West Bank two months ago in
an attempt to find a job and settle down before he brings his family over. Rihab
is a 23-year-old young lady with three girls aged five, three and a one year
old. Rihab just called the day prior to the party and asked whether she could
come and bring her three girls along, as her eldest daughter was anxious to see
Santa. It gives us great pleasure to have our former students come back and
always keep the connection.
An excellent lunch was served, followed by Carol singing, which brought Santa
along with the gifts. The children's joy and excitement were beyond all
description. We would like to seize this opportunity to thank all the friends
who made our Christmas party and lunch possible.
The YMCA Jerusalem Christmas Party
As usual, our friends at the YMCA in Jerusalem made all the arrangements for us
to attend. Permits were issued without any delay, and the bus arrived to pick us
up at the exact time. The children had a marvelous time, having great fun and
holding tightly on to their gifts.
Pilgrims Visiting the School
We are indeed greatly indebted to McCabe Educational Trust and to all the
friends who conduct tours to the Holy Land and include our school in their
visits. This is a profound support to us both morally and financially. The more
people are aware of our work, the greater the support, and the more people
experience our hardships and sufferings as Palestinians, the more eyes are
opened and the less hearts are blinded. Thank you.
Training Course
In early November, Mariam, our mobility and orientation instructor took part in
a five day course held in Beit Jala and offered by the Finnish Federation of the
Visually Impaired. The course offered training for rehabilitation instructors
for visually impaired people, with special emphasis on the perception of space,
reading and making tactile maps, getting new insight into the psychic processes
in rehabilitation and at the same time skills in supporting them. Mariam was
very pleased with the outcome.
Mariam at the mobility and orientation course
The
The Library in Jerusalem has been causing us many problems. It was there in East
Jerusalem that the National Society for the Visually Handicapped was established
in 1962. It has functioned as a library for the blind ever since. It is
therefore, the desire of the Board of Trustees that it ought to be maintained
for the sake of its historical background, and in order to retain our presence
in East Jerusalem. Unfortunately, both our employees there live in the West
Bank, and are unable to obtain permits to allow them entry to Jerusalem.
Consequently, they are unable to come to work; and this has been going on for
several months. For the last forty years they have been employed by the Society,
and are entitled to their retirement. The Board of Trustees, in its last
meeting, took the sad and difficult decision to terminate their services by the
end of December 2007. They will be missed.
We now have to recruit two new people to replace them and keep the work
going. The new recruits have to be residents of East Jerusalem.
Please accept our love, gratitude and best wishes for the year 2008. May it
bring prosperity, hope and good health to you all.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
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