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ANNA-CLARA BIRGESSON, “Our seminar was inspirational – everybody thought so,” emailed Anna-Clara Birgersson following a visit to Givat Haviva and Kibbutz Mishmar HaEmek with a group of international Ecumenical Accompaniers volunteering for 3 months in the Anna-Clara, a physiotherapist and psychotherapist “believes in the power of prayer and creative arts, and especially in peace building through expressive arts and that prayers in action generate change in meetings between people.” Together with other Accompaniers hailing from South Africa, Poland, Hungary, Germany, Norway, Switzerland, America and Britain, Anna-Clara and friends spent a few hours visiting the Arab Muslim village of Barta’a and area as well as visiting Mishmar HaEmek, the kibbutz of their guide for the day and Givat Haviva staff member Lydia Aisenberg and where the subject of community and the kibbutz movement discussed.
Ecumenical Accompaniers visiting Barta’a
picnic lunch in Kibbutz Mishmar HaEmek
RONEET KAHAN, LOS ANGELES “Everyone enjoyed the talk and wished that we could have carved out extra time to see what else could have been included. Many in the group came up to us and said they regretted the we could not spend more time – we will just have to continue on the next trip to Israel!” so wrote Roneet, one of a group of 30 friends from the Los Angeles visiting the country – some of whom having been to Israel many times before. RAPHAEL SHAINFARBER, A student studying in “I have now safely returned home to Indeed, when you agreed to show us around, I was eager to see and learn but I did not quite know what it was that I would be able to take away from the experience. Upon reflection, spending time touring the Moreover, standing on a mountain top looking at the West Bank on one side and the very flat state of In the coming days and weeks, as I continue to reflect upon my entire trip, I know that my ideas will continue to develop. As they do, I hope to be able to put some into writing. I would like to thank you for providing me with such a meaningful experience. Warm regards, Raffi.”
Raphael Shainfarber (blue t-shirt right) and friends Alan Borenstein, Daryn Epstein and Dave Abrahm meeting with Rateb Kabha, a Palestinian barber in the West Bank
JEREMY MARKS, Back home in Jeremy emailed that he found the talk given with regard the Arab citizens of Israel “to be both informative and useful and had greater impact actually being in/near the area in question itself as opposed to reading about it in London. Everyone in the group was really grateful and found the whole morning very insightful.”
Jeremy Marks by the Birthright bus out and about in Wadi Ara
JAN SCHNEIDER,
“I was among the German delegation that you gave a fine tour to the settlement area of Katzir and Harish and the villages of Barta’a last November. I appreciated your presentation a lot and drew quite some knowledge from it, which also – at least indirectly – influenced a recent paper I wrote on So thanks a lot! Maybe you will find the paper interesting or you could forward it to some of your potentially interested peers or colleagues (see download link below). Best regards from Berlin/Hamburg, Jan.” www.focus-migration.de/Israel.5246.0.html?&L=1 PAM PEARLMUTTER, Director, Passport to “ The kids loved being with you and the experience in Barta’a made them realize how close and complicated the situation in It was my pleasure meeting you and look forward to meeting again in the future. Pam Pearlmutter.” ROLAND HINUEBER, Photojournalist, “It was a great day with you – not just interesting to listen to you, it was also fun. I really appreciated your Welsh humor. I will come back to you on my next trip to Kind regards from the green and currently wet
Photographs sent by photojournalist Roland Hinueber of
LENA JERSENIUS, Co-chairperson of the Committee Against Anti-Semitism and Racism, Lena headed a Swedish delegation of educators in “Thank you very much for taking so good care of us when we were in The group was extremely satisfied and in an evaluation someone suggested we rate our different activities and not surprisingly you had the top position! You are doing a tremendous job explaining positions, situations and showing places. The Middle East is so difficult to “read” and my Swedish colleagues being typical Swedes have a hard time leaving Swedish stances and putting themselves in another context,” emailed Lena from ANNAKARIN THORN, one of the Swedish teachers in a separate email wrote: “For me, the time we spend together with you was the most memorable and important day of our whole trip to I feel very grateful to have been able to see those places. The meeting with you and the visit to the different places in the West Bank has given me a better and wider understanding and perspective about the conflict,” commented Annakarin also from
Swedish teachers at Holocaust Memorial in Kibbutz Mishmar HaEmek
outside the girl’s high school in East Barta’a
CHRISTINA WHITELAW, a British educator living in GERMANY
“I’m the Scotswoman who was on the road recently with the German teachers and had the incredible good fortune to stumble your way at Givat Haviva. Thanks for the insight you gave us, have been thinking about it ever since. I was also glad to get your articles a colleague passed on to all of us. My dream would be to take some of my knowledge-thirsty pupils to work on the campus in some way!” JOSHUA, NA’AMA and SEGEV YARDEN, Josh Yarden and family are Israelis living in Whilst in Israel recently to celebrate the bar mitzvah of Segev, the Yarden’s visited Givat Haviva (where Josh had both studied and taught quite some years ago) and embarked with Lydia on a Green Line tour. An email from Josh: “
Left: SEGEV YARDEN at the Mei Ami stretch of the security fence and with parents Josh and Na’ama overlooking Barta’a village and the
Thanks everybody for your encouraging emails and look forward to meeting you again when you next visit Toda, shukran, thanks and merci!
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