Growing up in a tense political environment is particularly challenging for children, regardless of their background. It is therefore all the more important that they hear about tolerance, peace, and reconciliation. The Christian-Arab aid organization Seeds of Hope, which we as Christians supporting Israel have created just such a place with its Seeds of Hope School for Palestinian children in Jericho. In its latest newsletter, it reports on the most recent developments.
As summer continues at Seeds of Hope, we're busy with camps, team outings, and trying to beat the Jericho heat. We're also working hard to prepare for the new school year, carrying out essential renovations to be ready for the first day of classes.
Our top priority was ensuring our upper school had all the necessary facilities to start sixth grade next year. For expansion to middle school, the Ministry of Education requires schools to have a science lab and a computer room for students. And although our last school building project created the necessary space, we still had to complete the rooms.
In May, we reported that we still needed to raise $48,000 to fully equip our new classrooms and labs with furniture, smartboards, supplies, and other technology. We are now delighted to announce that, thanks to the generous support of the Seeds of Hope family, this project is now fully funded!
The teams have worked hard this summer to prepare our new spaces. These include the science and computer rooms, two classrooms for our new sixth grade classes, and an office for our senior year coordinator and social worker.
One step closer to fulfilling the dream
“When our dream of a Seeds of Hope school began to take shape in 2019, our goal was to create a well-equipped environment that would facilitate and enrich our students’ learning,” said Jessica Baboun, head of the Seeds of Hope education program. “With the establishment of computer and science labs this year, we have come one step closer to fulfilling our big dream, and we are very excited. We are very grateful to everyone who believes in our work and has contributed to making this vision a reality.”
When school starts again this fall, we will be one year closer to our long-term goal of keeping children in Seeds of Hope facilities from infancy through high school graduation. And this progress isn't just because we raised the $48,000 we needed in May. It's about so much more than that. Every step we take is built on a decade of support and connection with people from all over the world. We would never have the opportunity to set up a computer lab if we hadn't been able to make slow but steady progress for years thanks to generous supporters like you.
And as incredible as this progress is, we're also back at the beginning. Because next year we have to ensure that our students can move on to seventh and then eighth grade – but more on that later.
This is a goal to which we are committed for the long term, and it does not discourage us. On the contrary, it encourages us to see how far we have come together. And although there is still much to be done, we are now taking the time to rejoice in your support and God's help in meeting our needs.
Thank you!
Standing by Israel also means keeping the Arab people and their perspectives in mind. With our Arab-Christian project partner Seeds of Hope in Jericho, we invest in educational and reconciliation programs between Arabs and Jews. You can find more information inournewsletter from April , in which we presented Seeds of Hope's school project in detail.
