I

The

S

Necktie

Seeds of Pedce leader recalls Hussein's encouragement.

JOEL JACOB
Special to The Jewish News

T

this has been accomplished: local Jews
and Arabs are now active in raising
funds for the camp, as well as initiating
other projects to strengthen Arab-
Jewish relations.
The 1997 dinner at which I met King
Hussein and Queen Noor included a
fundraising auction, for which the king

wenty years before he
grabbed headlines for his
pivotal role in the Middle
East peace process, I shared
a bond with King Hussein of Jordan.
That's because, I — an avid
0
waterskier — had seen the
monarch gracing the cover of
American Waterskier magazine. I
got to meet my fellow water-
sport enthusiast two years ago,
0
this time because we shared
another passion: Seeds of Peace.
Seeds of Peace brings togeth-
er the brightest and most articu-
late Arab and Israeli teens to a
coexistence summer camp in
Maine each year.
The group, on whose board I
A7n;
serve, honored King Hussein and
the
Queen Noor, who were among
Seeds <= t•
our most enthusiastic supporters.
During our meeting at the din-
had donated a flight to Jordan on Royal
ner in his honor, the king and queen
Jordanian Airlines and a special tour of
encouraged me to continue the work
his palace. When the package went for
of Seeds of Peace and bring Detroit's
$60,000, King Hussein was so excited he
Arab and Jewish communities together
immediately stepped up and offered
in its support. I am pleased to say that
another one, which sold for $50,000.
Joel E. Jacob is a member of Seeds
I will always remember his remarks
of Peace's national board of directors
that evening:
and is a founding member of Seeds
"One of the most encouraging ele-
of Peace/Detroit.
ments as I have seen it in the recent

O

C

years is to learn from the children. Pure
of heart. Give them the chance. Remove
the barriers that separate them, the walls
through which they could not see each
other. Give them the opportunity to
come together. And together they are
capable without any doubt of achieving
great things in the time ahead."
King Hussein and Queen Noor pro-
vided other kinds of support for Seeds
of Peace as well. In 1996, they invited
Seeds of Peace's 200 alumni to hold a
reunion in Jordan, which included fol-
low-up coexistence workshops, meet-
ings with government leaders and an
in-depth discussion with the king.
King Hussein made a point of
wearing, at critical times, a necktie
bearing the Seeds of Peace logo. The
tie, with its interlocking images of
three figures linked by an olive
branch, could be seen on the king at
the Wye Conference, when he brought
Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat and
Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin
Netanyahu together to move the peace
process forward. When King Hussein
emerged from his plane that he him-
self piloted back to Jordan just three
short weeks ago, he again was wearing
his Seeds of Peace tie.
The king had a zest for life and a
passion for adventure, as seen through
his love of water sports, horseback rid-
ing and piloting. He will be sorely
missed by all people of peace. Fl

Diplomant recalls monarch's key role in peace process.

HARRY KIRS BAUM
Staff Writer

avid Hermelin, the Detroit
businessman who is U. S.
ambassador to Norway, said
Tuesday there was a Hebrew
erm for what King Hussein of Jordan
,tried to advance in the Middle East.
e have an expression in Hebrew,
ca le• `' + alom Bayit (peace in the
house), he' aid. "If they can have
- house, maybe it
Shalom Bay
ontinuation on
can translateiinto
the road to
Hermelin, 62, a philanthropist and
community leader, said Hussein was

"an integral part of the peace process.
He recalled two meetings with the
monarch, once at the White House
months before the October 1994,
Jordanian-Israeli peace agreement, and
another time at Prime Minister Yitzhak
Rabin's funeral in November 1995.
"In both of those instances,"
Hermelin said, it demonstrated his
core commitment to a vision of peace,
and to a vision of sharing of natural
resources and of a dream of future
generations of children, and grandchil-
dren and great-grandchildren."
Hermelin had surgery earlier this
year to remove a brain tumor, a differ-
ent kind of cancer from the non-

"

Hodgkins lymphoma that killed the
king last week.
"King Hussein, both when he was
well, and through his illness, made a
significant and positive contribution,"
Hermelin said. "I hope that peace
comes about because of mutual self-
interest, and I'm hopeful that the
momentum that has been established
has almost taken on a life of its own.
"There's a lot happening, especially
with the commitments that Jordan has
made," Hermelin said. "I think they're
important for Jordan and important for
Israel, and I think they're one of the
important building blocks in building
the mosaic of peace in that region." 17

Remembenng
King Hussein

Rabbi Herbert
Yoskowitz,
Adat Shalom
"I remember
most when he
spoke at the
funeral of Rabin
and referred to
him as a brother. I was so
moved by that kind of senti-
ment being expressed in the
State of Israel, in its most holy
city Jerusalem, at a place where
he was giving honor to the
dead. That moment has always
stayed with me."

Jerome S.
Kaufman,
president Zionist
Organization of
America - Metro
Detroit District
"So we'll miss
King Hussein
because of his stabilizing effect on
the area, but not go overboard
that Hussein did it out of the
good graces of his heart. It was
his own national interests to
maintain relationships with Israel,
which by the way is the best
political reason ... He did a mar-
velous juggling act throughout
the years."

Rabbi Aaron
Bergman, Beth
Abraham
Hillel Moses
"He was a man
who had been an
enemy but showed
a lot of growth,
who really reached out to people
and brought a lot of different sides
together. When he reached out to
make peace with Israel, I was in
tears, it was just beautiful."

Rabbi Leo Goldman, Shaarey
Shomayirn
"The most memorable thing he did
was when he regretted very deeply
and bent to the ground, and bowed
for the innocent children who were
killed by one of the Jordanian sol-
diers. This was a demonstration
that he really meant it."

— Compiled by Harry Kirsbaum,

2/12

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Detroit Jewish News

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