Sheilah & Si Kalderon Visit

Coffee at Ashkelon Marina with Sigal and Nicole

Sheilah and Si Kalderon were in Ashkelon to check out some Baltimore Jewish Community funded projects and see the Michael Lapidus Park (Park Baltimore) and the Lyn Stacie Getz Playground.

As VP of the Women's Division at the Associated Sheilah and her husband Si, were particularly interested to hear about LEAP and see the new immigrants at Beit Canada Absorption Center.

Sheilah chooses LEAP work to take home with her With Oriana Hadad at Beit Canada

Above, Oriana explains that Ethiopian new immigrants can stay at the absorption center for up to two years. They live in self contained apartments while they learn Hebrew and adjust to the Israeli way of life.

No visit to Ashkelon is complete without a stroll round the Michael Lapidus Park (Park Baltimore )and the Lyn Stacie Getz Playground. The Park is rather dry now because of the drought related water restrictions. Nicole

The Baltimore Crab in the Lyn Stacie Getz Playground

More photos can be seen in the photo album.

Red Alert for Otzma

Otzma in Ashkelon!

Five Otzma-niks will be coming to live and work in Ashkelon for 3 months from January 2009. They have already spent a weekend in Ashkelon getting to know their host families. The 5 Otzma-niks were in town on 5th November to see where they will be living and to look at various volunteer options.

Otzma 2008-2009 in front of a mosaic made by Otzma-niks of previous years, Beit Canada

First stop on their visit was Ashkelon municipality. No sooner had they arrived in the building, when the Red Alert siren sounded. Ceasefire Shmeasefire, we are still experiencing the occasional rocket attack. The rocket landed in another neighborhood and luckily caused no damage, but our Otzmaniks were reminded that life in Ashkelon will be something of an adventure.

The tour of the city proceeded with stops at Netzach Yisrael community kindergarten, Beit Canada absorption center, Calanit student absorption center, Bet Tzipora, and afternoon day care facilities for children at risk. Nicole

Oriana Haddad outlines volunteer options for working with Ethiopian new immigrants at Beit Canada Absorption Center

Report from our Otzmaniks: "We are eager and excited and looking forward to being in Ashkelon! We love our host families and already love the city, can't wait to live here, visit the beach, and the marina, find our favorite felafel store, and shop at the shouk".

Alizka and Esther of Calanit student absorption center hosted our Otzmaniks for lunch and showed them the rooms where they will be staying from January 2009. The rooms have been newly renovated and furnished.

Lunch at Calanit

Meir Bouhnik of "The Ashkelon Foundation" ("Keren Ashkelon") and Mazal, Head of Bet Tzipora, show the Otzmaniks around Bet Tzipora - a joint project with Eli and Marion Wiesel