“I came here feeling shame, but I leave here feeling strong.”
- A mother with her daughter as they are about to complete the Women's Empowerment Program at Princess Basma Center for Disabled Children in East Jerusalem.
The two- to three-week residential program allows mothers whose children are newly-diagnosed with a disability to learn to provide individualized therapies for their children, to become advocates for their children in a region where disabilities are often stigmatized, and to connect and build relationships with other mothers who face similar challenges. Because travel restrictions on Palestinians living outside of Jerusalem impede regular access to needed therapies, this residential program, which served 490 mothers in 2017, offers a lifeline and lasting benefits to many families.
Thanks to the Rev. Matthew Dayton-Welch, an AFEDJ trustee currently leading a group of pilgrims from the Diocese of Pennsylvania, for taking the time during their visit to the Princess Basma Center to interview this mother. Stay-tuned for more from his interview.
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Church leads effort to save St. Luke's Hospital in Nablus
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Last year St. Luke’s Hospital in Nablus, the northern West Bank city of 350,000 people, was forced to sideline its 15 year-old ambulance due to constant breakdowns. While depending on other emergency service providers for more than 2,000 patient transfer wasn’t optimal, St. Luke’s director, Dr. Walid Kerry, and rest of his staff adapted to the loss.
That status quo shifted in the fall of 2018 when Kerry was notified by the Palestinian Authority Ministry of Health that new annual accreditation standards require each full-service hospital to operate a functional ambulance. Without one, St. Luke’s would lose its license and be forced to close its doors. The price tag of $110,000 to purchase, convert, equip, and insure a new ambulance was out of reach for a hospital whose mission is to serve everyone who walks through its doors, irrespective of their religion, ethnicity, or ability to pay.
That’s when AFEDJ supporters stepped up.
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Enter the Rev. Sari Ateek, a Palestinian-born Episcopal priest, and the Rev. Anne Derse, a newly-ordained Episcopal deacon, who serve at St. John’s Episcopal Parish, Norwood, in Chevy Chase, Maryland. Working in partnership with the AFEDJ, the two teamed up to raise $50,000 by appealing to other Washington, DC-area churches. By mid-January they had raised just over $83,000. Together with $27,000 raised by the Anglican Communion Fund in the UK, the goal was met.
A new ambulance will soon be back on the road and St. Luke’s will continue its century-old mission as a charity hospital.
Click the image to hear Dr. Walid Kerry, director of St. Luke's Hospital, talk about the pressing need for a new ambulance.
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“
When I first learned of St. Luke’s urgent need for an ambulance and that the hospital’s accreditation depended on it, I thought to myself, 'This is a no-brainer!'
We were nearing the Christmas season, and it felt like a profound opportunity to practice our faith by giving a Christmas gift that brings restoration and healing.”
- the Rev. Sari Ateek
“All we had to do was ask. People wanted to do good.”
- the Rev. Anne Derse
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AFEDJ donors take the lead on rebuilding Ahli Hospital’s outpatient clinic
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When the outpatient clinic at Ahli Arab Hospital in Gaza collapsed into its foundation in early December, it seemed like the culmination of an
annus horribilis
for the 120 year-old institution.
Clashes at the border and deep unrest in Gaza last spring, the effects of U.S. cuts in aid to the UN agency that serves Palestinian refugees, and the total failure of the hospital’s aged water system in November together rained down on Ahli in a perfect storm. And then the outpatient clinic building crumbled to dust.
Suhaila Tarazi, director of Ahli, expressed gratitude that no one was injured in the collapse. Since then, patients continue to receive treatment from medical professionals, though at a slower pace in crowded hallways and temporary conditions.
The high demand for the clinic’s free healthcare services - clinicians see more than 500 patients each month - left no question that the clinic needed to be rebuilt. A preliminary engineering study completed shortly after the collapse indicated a cost of $170,000.
Thanks to the ongoing generosity of AFEDJ donors, we were able to provide well over half of the funding - $110,000 - to rebuild the clinic. Funds raised by the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem from other Anglican and
international partners
has added an additional $44,000. The AFEDJ Board of Trustees designated funds in reserve, and Episcopal Relief & Development pledged to provide up to $20,000 to meet any gap between funds raised and the total cost of the project.
With the necessary funding in place, rebuilding of Ahli’s outpatient clinic will begin as soon as a detailed construction plan is in place.
Because of your gifts, hundreds of families in Gaza City and outlying towns will continue to receive the quality care provided by Ahli Hospital.
Thank you to all.
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Share films in your community
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Voices from the Holy Land, an interfaith coalition of 80 faith communities, has sponsored a film series in the Washington, D.C. area for many years. It now invites other churches and community partners to sponsor viewings of selected documentary films from their library.
In addition, Voices from the Holy Land provides guidelines for planning, checklists, templates for developing promotional materials, and suggestions for discussions. Learn more at
voicesfromtheholyland.org
or click
here
for a flyer.
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Sell Fair Trade Palestinian products for a triple bottom line
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Below is a list of websites that offer Fair Trade goods such as olive oil, spices, grains, olivewood bowls and utensils, clothing, housewares, all from Palestinian farmers and craftspeople. By buying their products at a fair price you provide income and economic stability to their families.
You can double your impact by buying in bulk to sell in your congregation, at your diocesan convention, or to people in your wider community and then donating the proceeds to Palestinians through AFEDJ. Your donations will support people served by the Diocese of Jerusalem’s humanitarian institutions.
The triple bottom line comes with the awareness raised as you sell these products and talk about the impact with those who purchase them.
Canaan Palestine sells olive oil, spices, grains, condiments, gifts, and more that are produced by more than 2,000 small farmers, organized in village cooperatives and represented by the Palestine Fair Trade Association (PFTA).
In 2012 three Episcopal priests led a Women’s Witness Trip to Palestine and returned home to continue to promote the region and the products produced by women there.
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American Friends of the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem | 203-655-3575
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www.afedj.org
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Transforming lives of the vulnerable and displaced
in the Middle East through support of schools, hospitals,
and centers for children with disabilities.
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AFEDJ offers a safe, secure channel to make gifts to support the work of the humanitarian institutions of the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem.
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