another State Department-organized visit. The group this time is a group of leaders who work with youth and are from Israel, Gaza and the West Bank. This will take place on Thursday, June 28, 2 to 4pm (room tbd). Below you will see areas of interest identified by group participants – we do not need to address all of these, but it is helpful to see the list. The various interests noted may also prompt you to suggest someone nearby we might invite to join in the conversation.
Also noted are the individuals who are part of the delegation and their respective organizations.
I will definitely meet with the group, and Henry has volunteered to do so for about half an hour. The rest of staff: let me know if you are available to speak to the group for some portion of their visit. Allegra and Natasha: I think it would be great for you to sit in on the meeting, and participate. Kassie – I’m sorry you will be out of town.
LIST OF PARTICIPANTS
Gaza Ms. Ameera I S ALNAJAR
Coordinator, Kids School of Music, Al Qattan Foundation
Israel Mr. Nega ALENE
Director, Community Development, FIDEL (Association for Education and Social Integration of Ethiopian Jews)
Mr. Samer ATAMNI
Coordinator and Group Facilitator, Givat Haviva Institute
Ms. Rita BRUDNIK
Chief Executive Officer, Fishka (Russian-Speaking Community Youth Club)
Mr. Yair ZAAFRANY
Director, Learning and Enrichment Centers for Youth
Bekehila JVP Community
West Bank Mr. Badee M T ALDWAIK
Deputy Coordinator, Youth Against Settlements
Ms. Grace I E ALZOUGHBI
Lecturer, Bethlehem Bible College
Mr. Mahmoud H H KHLEIF
Director, Al-Sadeel Society for Palliative Care
for Cancer Patients
Remarks from their recent program opening, about special interests while they are on the three week National program, named, (NEA Peace Partners) “Volunteerism and Youth”
- Ms. Rita Brudnik, who heads the community club for Russian émigré youth, is interested in community work with immigrants, especially Russians. She is also interested in opportunities for partnerships, and in volunteering side-by-side with Americans while she’s here.
- Ms. Grace Alzoughbi, the lecturer at the Christian Bible College, is interested in gathering transferable information about how NGOs deal with youth issues and challenges here, and in learning more about American life.
- Mr. Yair Zaafrany, the learning centers director, wants to discover new methods of thinking for dealing with young people.
- Mr. Nega Alene, who directs the Association for Education and Social Integration of Ethiopian Jews, is interested in meeting people from Ethiopian communities in the U.S. and learning how they are integrating with other groups, including African Americans.
- Mr. Badee Aldwalk, the youth anti-settlement group leader, is interested in the experiences of volunteers, in learning about how Americans “accept each other in spite of differences” and racism.
- Mr. Mahmoud Khleif, an attorney whose organization assists cancer patients with the help of youth volunteers, wants to learn about the experiences of others who work with women and the poor, including his Israeli project colleagues.
- Ms. Ameera Alnajar, who coordinates a foundation’s music center for children, wants to learn from and observe others who deal with youth. She is a strong believer in self-expression through the arts as a means of learning how to live in peace, and in “music as the language of peace and love.”* (I’m with her on that! J)
- Mr. Samer Atami is an Israeli Arab who works with the Face to Face Project, a fast-growing initiative that brings Jewish and Arab youth together for retreats and other activities. He is interested in learning more about “the American system,” in exchanging ideas with American counterparts, and in opportunities for future cooperation with them.
Let me know if you can meet with the group!
Best to all,
Annie
