26 | DECEMBER 21 • 2023 

kind of adults will children who 
are exposed to [violence] grow 
up to be?’” Damelin says. “What 
kind of adults will they be if we 
don’t work with them?”

OASIS OF PEACE
Oasis of Peace is a small village 
located in central Israel where 
Israelis and Palestinians have 
lived side-by-side for decades. 
The American Friends of Neve 
Shalom, or “Oasis of Peace” in 
Hebrew and Arabic, help support 
village operations and programs 
from across the ocean.
The village consists of more 
than 300 members of diverse 
backgrounds and faiths, 
including Jewish, Muslim and 
Christian. In its more than 50 
years of operation, Oasis of Peace 
has been home to numerous 
Palestinian-Israeli and Jewish-
Israeli families who have made 
the choice to live together 
peacefully.

Now, they continue to operate 
despite the conflict. Within the 
village is a bilingual school for 
village children and surrounding 
communities, and members make 
decisions collectively.
The goal is to create not 
only a model of equality in the 
Middle East, but also for the 
entire world. Throughout the 
war, Oasis of Peace is recording 
Zoom meetings from the village 
to share updates with supporters 
and the general public about 
ongoing relations.

GIVAT HAVIVA
Givat Haviva is a civil society 
organization associated with the 
Havatzelet Group that strives for 
social change by creating a shared 
Israeli and Palestinian society.
With a focus on education, 
language instruction, culture 
and art, Givat Haviva is built 
upon developing a strong Israeli-
Palestinian partnership. Recently, 

it’s also offered a safe space for 
families evacuated from Otef 
Gaza (Israeli towns bordering 
Gaza).
Under the Givat Haviva 
umbrella exists Givat Haviva 
International School, a northern 
Israel coed boarding high school 
that brings together students 
ages 15 to 18 from Israeli and 
Palestinian communities. There, 
they live and study in a peaceful 
environment.
“GHS promotes peace every 
day, and that’s even more 
important right now,” says the 
school’s executive director Nurit 
Gery. “Our student body is 25% 
Jews from Israel, 25% Arabs from 
Israel and 50% students from over 
30 countries around the world.”
While Gery says many 
programs in Israel temporarily 
stopped during the onset 
of the war, GHIS continued 
operations even through the most 
challenging days.
“The students continually 
remind us that when people who 
truly believe in diversity and 
respect come together, there is 
hope for a peaceful future,” she 
explains, “even when it’s so hard 
to imagine.”
On the GHIS campus, Gery 
notes that Israeli and Palestinian 
students continue to view one 
another as friends and partners, 
rather than as enemies.
“We know that the pull is 
strong to return to the easy 
narrative of seeing each other 
as different, the ‘other,’ but the 
friendships they created at GHIS 
strengthen and encourage them,” 
she says, “preventing them from 
retreating.” 

OUR COMMUNITY

continued from page 25

Students from Givat Haviva 
International School