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SPOTLIGHT: Bright Stars Kids Visit SOS Children's Village PDF Print E-mail

KhamisKhamis, 9, was orphaned when his parents were shot and killed by Israeli soldiers during a raid on their neighborhood in the city of Nablus, in the northern West Bank, in 2005.  Since then, Khamis, his brother, and their two sisters have been living in the SOS Children’s Village in Bethlehem, an orphanage run by the Austrian SOS Kinderdorf International organization, which opened in 1966.

There are 94 children at SOS now, aged 3-14, living in communal houses under the supervision and care of “alternative mothers”, who are responsible for cooking, caring for, and planning activities for the children.  The house mothers know that the children in their care need activities that will help them academically and socially, and that will help them to discover and develop their talents.

Rather than keeping the children inside the orphanage for these activities, the house mothers thought that it might be a great opportunity for the kids to go out into the community and join in activities with other kids from the Bethlehem area.  Not only would this let the children from SOS get to know Bethlehem and make some new friends, but it would also let the community get to know the SOS kids.  By going out into the community, the SOS kids could help others learn that even though they come from difficult or unfortunate family backgrounds, they still have the same needs and dreams as other kids, and are just as deserving of opportunities to grow and excel.

A partnership began in February 2009 between the SOS Children’s Village and the International Center of Bethlehem’s “Bright Stars” program, which welcomes children from all over the Bethlehem area to its Friday activity clubs.  Children from Bethlehem, Beit Sahour, Beit Jala, the surrounding villages, the three refugee camps, and now the SOS orphanage meet in their clubs on Fridays to play and learn together.  Ten clubs (including ones in music, art, fashion design, drama, drawing, karate, swimming and ballet) meet in various locations around Bethlehem.

Khamis at SOSKhamis, one of the 20 children from the SOS orphanage who now participate in the Bright Stars clubs, is an active participant in the drama club.  In fact, most of the kids from the SOS orphanage have chosen drama over the other activities.  Ghaida Rahil, the manager of the Bright Stars program, thinks this is because children with traumatic or difficult pasts are craving a way to creatively express their feelings and relate their experiences to other people.

Khamis says, “I can act as someone who is sad or poor, to show the audiences the emotions of people who are like this.”

Always ready to try new roles and techniques, Khamis is one of the most enthusiastic members of the drama club.  He works hard to improve his acting skills, because, he says, in school they sometimes have ceremonies or presentations, and he thinks that if he becomes better in acting, then he’ll have a better chance of getting chosen to participate.  He says that when he grows up, he wants to be a drama teacher:  “I want to teach children how to act and express themselves by acting.”  

Since February, SOS and Bright Stars have cooperated to organize a number of special events and activities.  In March, when Mother’s Day is celebrated in Palestine, the house mothers at SOS were invited to join in the festivities.  Bright Stars mothers and kids ages 9 and up were invited to listen to the SOS house mothers talk about their experiences caring for children at the orphanage.  Sharing stories is a great way to build connections and find common ground, and now the Bright Stars moms are planning to visit the orphanage, to see where the house mothers have invested so much of their love and care.

SOS visitThe biggest joint event so far was in May, when all of the Bright Stars kids went to visit the SOS Children’s Village to see where their friends lived, and to play and have fun together.  After visiting the orphanage, all the kids went to the Health & Wellness Center for a swim.

If any prejudices existed against the children from the orphanage before, this visit was important in helping to overcome them.  In fact, after seeing how the children and house mothers interact and treat each other at the orphanage, some of the Bright Stars kids have resolved to “be less noisy” at home (Kamilya, 8) and be more cooperative and helpful towards their mothers and siblings.  The Bright Stars kids also seemed surprised at how clean and nice the orphanage was, compared to what they had pictured in their minds.  “I like their home, it is very beautiful and clean!” says Jihan, 6.

Shared activities like this really help bridge gaps in acceptance and understanding.  Johnny, 12, says, “after this visit, I will treat the kids from SOS better.  I want to be friends with them.”  In fact, most of the Bright Stars kids said they wanted to see and play with the kids at SOS again, and invite them to their own homes.  Majdulen, 5, sums it up:  “I want to be one of their friends because they are very kind people, and they are very nice.  I want to play with them and be friends with them.  We played together at the swimming pool, and we are so happy to be together!”

The Bright Stars coordinator and staff are grateful for the cooperation of the SOS Children’s Village in these joint activities, and for the generous support of local and international donors and partner organizations.  If you would like to make a difference in the life of a child of Bethlehem by supporting the Bright Stars program, click here to donate today.
 
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