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HYDEWHYTE

Articles Posted: 20  Links Seeded: 6
Member Since: 5/2011  Last Seen: 5/16/2012

Israeli and Arab Children Suffer from Trauma - SOS Children's Villages Helps Orphans

Seeded on Sun Nov 6, 2011 9:35 PM EST
Read ArticleArticle Source: SOS-USA
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Seeded by HydeWhyte
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SOS Children's Villages is the world's largest charity focused on providing loving homes for orphaned and abandoned children. SOS operates 475 villages in 132 countries and believes that the protection of children transcends all borders and political circumstance.

SOS Children's Villages has been operating in the Palestinian Territories since 1968 and in Israel since 1977. Peace has always been a core value and teaching for SOS. Youths from Palestine and Israel have an established exchange program between the two SOS villages in Israel (Neradim and Megadim) and the two villages in the Palestinian Territories (Bethlehem and Rafah).

In the latest military action, the four SOS villages were not damaged, nor were SOS children physically injured. However, the conflict took a huge toll on the mental health of Jewish and Arab children alike. In the Gaza strip, SOS service providers have reached out to families providing food parcels, schooling and child care to 187 families including 900 children.

http://www.sos-usa.org/newsroom/press-releases/pages/israeli-and-arab-children-suffer-from-trauma.aspx

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HydeWhyte

In war, there are no winners. I recently started sponsoring a child in the Bethlehem facility, so please, lets not be blowing it up, bombing it, shooting at it, or any of that nonsense.

  • 7 votes
Reply#1 - Sun Nov 6, 2011 9:39 PM EST
JimEdee

And that's the sad thing about wars. Kids seem to be the ones who are hurt the worse. I think back to Vietnam, and a good friend died three days before his son was born. The only thing that boy had growing up were pictures and what we told him about his dad. He'd of been proud to see how that boy grew into a fine man, with a family of his own.

The children in the middle east, and anywhere where there is war, will live with the hidden scars for their whole life. Glad to see you step up Hyde.

  • 4 votes
Reply#2 - Sun Nov 6, 2011 10:27 PM EST
HydeWhyte

Thanks, Jim. I have empathy for the victims on both sides and will be glad when war is finally a thing of the past.

  • 4 votes
#2.1 - Sun Nov 6, 2011 11:25 PM EST
Reply
black spider

Palestinian children are educated to kill and hate Jews, the very people who provide them with the highest standard of living among Muslim countries in the middle east (except a few oil rich countries with a small population), while millions of Muslims live in poverty.

We need more peace and less hatred. Good job.

  • 4 votes
Reply#3 - Sun Nov 6, 2011 10:50 PM EST
HydeWhyte

Thanks, black spider. I am acutely aware of the things Palestinian children are taught by many of their educators, but thankfully SOS is not among that faculty. And it may be wishful thinking but I'd settle for all peace and no hatred:)

  • 8 votes
#3.1 - Sun Nov 6, 2011 11:29 PM EST
black spider

Thank you sir. You made my day. Finally we hear good stories of people doing good for others selflessly. : )

  • 3 votes
#3.2 - Mon Nov 7, 2011 12:23 AM EST
Chris-735081

Well, not all palestinian children are raised like that. But HAMAS has a bad way about them with how they handle relations.

  • 1 vote
#3.3 - Mon Nov 7, 2011 3:30 AM EST
Reply
Buzz of the Orient

Way to go, HW. "Welcome back to the fight." (Victor Laszlo [Paul Hendreid] to Rick Blaine [Humphrey Bogart] in Casablanca)

As far as I'm concerned, that photo can be used anytime, anywhere, and by anyone. It's not mine anyway, but the message is unbeatable.

  • 4 votes
Reply#4 - Mon Nov 7, 2011 12:01 AM EST
HydeWhyte

Thank you for the idea of seeding it, Buzz. You deserve more credit for it than I do.

  • 2 votes
#4.1 - Mon Nov 7, 2011 4:01 PM EST
Buzz of the Orient

You're very welcome. There were a lot of commenters on that other seed who wouldn't touch something positive like this with a ten foot pole.

  • 2 votes
#4.2 - Mon Nov 7, 2011 7:22 PM EST
HydeWhyte

It was not unintentional that this seed also touches on some of the consequences of Operation Cast Lead. For the reason you mentioned, if some of those viners were to participate in discussions regarding this, I would expect some focus on the negative aspects rather than the positive. I would also find it interesting to see how an interaction between the pro-Israel and pro-Palestinian crowds might play out with it: I would hope for some positive development but wouldn't be surprised if it just turned into another slugfest. Must be the pessimist in me:)

  • 2 votes
#4.3 - Tue Nov 8, 2011 2:10 PM EST
Reply
HydeWhyte

I recently received my info packet on my sponsored child in the SOS Children's Village in Bethlehem. I had intended to post his photo but it seems that I can't add a photo to a seed like I can with an article. I then tried to remove the linked photo to replace it with the new photo but the original photo just stays there even after selecting the "don't use this photo" option. Oh well, maybe his photo doesn't need to be out there for all to see anyway.

His name is Karem (middle & last name withheld for his protection) and he was welcomed to the SOS Village in August 2011 along with his three brothers and one sister, because his parents were not able to care for the children. He is 8 years old and in his photo he is very smartly dressed and looks like a happy child with a beaming smile on his face. I pray that the facility personnel are kind to the children and do not subject them to any kind of abuse.

Sponsors are able to send letters and such to the children and visit the facility if they are in the area. I will add them to the itinerary if I ever decide to visit the land of Israel.

  • 2 votes
Reply#5 - Sat Nov 19, 2011 10:57 PM EST
Buzz of the Orient

Way to go, HW. You are truly a good person. By the way, I had the same trouble trying to change a photo image on an article. I was thinking of corresponding with NV staff to see if that can be changed. You could, of course write a new article about your experience with respect to Karem, and use his photo there.

  • 2 votes
#5.1 - Sat Nov 19, 2011 11:26 PM EST
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