News page of the Academic Year 2004 2005
Teachers' Yearly Lunch
This is the second year we have a yearly lunch for our
teachers and members of staff in appreciation of their hard work. It is held in
summer when the students and children are at home. Although some wanted a much
fancier restaurant we could only afford a fast food place so we went to the B to
B restaurant in Kornet Chehwan on Tuesday September 13. 2005. The food was very
good and everyone had a good time.
CMS Grant for the
New Minibus
We express our sincere gratitude to CMS (Church Mission
Society - Britain) and Mrs Barbara Shaw, regional manager for the Middle East,
for the grant of GBP 2000 which was sent to BLESSED for the new minibus. We
praise God for miraculously meeting this very important need of our school
through our kind partners. The minibus was bought with funds kindly
donated by BibleLands, CMS, and MECO.
Additional Washing Machine from BibleLands
The additional washing machine that we badly needed for
our laundry room was delivered on 6 September 2005. It is a General Electric
WISR309 washer that can take up to 10 kilograms of washing items. With the other
machine we have which takes up to 13 kilograms we will be able to cope with the
laundry demands of our school. The machine was bought with funds kindly donated
by BibleLands. We express our sincere gratitude to BibleLands for their
generosity, love, and continued support of our school.
Mr. Khalil
Younes Visits BLESSED
Mr. Khalil Younes, a dear friend and supporter of our
school, visited BLESSED on Wednesday 24 August 2005 accompanied with his brother
Yousef. They are both visiting Lebanon, Khalil from the United States and Yousef
from France. They are the grandsons of Khalil Younes (Senior) who was a student
in our school. Three years ago Khalil (Junior) was surfing the net and reached
our website from which he got our news and the information he needed to contact
us. Since then he became a friend and generous supporter of our school. It was a
great privilege to meet him and show him all the projects he participated in
funding. He informed us that his grandfather is in the
historic picture of
our school (seated in back row second from the
right). Although the school is closed for the summer holiday and the students
and children are at home, Khalil was able to see the school and hear first hand
about both our programs. We highly appreciate Khalil's friendship and enthusiasm
for our school, and we express to him our sincere gratitude for his kind visit
and continued support.
Exodus Team &
Summer Program for Bartimaeus Students
Members of the Exodus Team (from Belfast - Northern
Ireland) arrived to BLESSED on Saturday 23 July and stayed until August 2, 2005
. They did some paintwork and took part in the summer program for the
Bartimaeus students (25 - 29 July). They interacted with our students and
fellowshipped with them.
On Tuesday 26 July the Bartimaeus students went for a
school trip to Abraham's river and had a picnic lunch. Later in the afternoon
they visited Yahshoush, a beautiful remote mountain village of Tony Atallah, one
of our students. His mother received them with wonderful hospitality offering
them juice,
coffee and fruits. Everyone had a wonderful day. Members of the Exodus Team were
resting on that day in the Baptist Seminary in Mansouriyyeh, recovering from the
hard work they had done in Cedar Home Orphanage the previous week. The Exodus
Team returned to BLESSED on Wednesday 27 July to start the day with chapel
that included song, prayer, personal testimony, and games. Later in the morning
the team started painting our classrooms.
On Thursday 28 July the Exodus team together with our
students visited Jeitta and Byblos. Each team member was responsible for one of
our visually impaired students for the whole day. They guided them through the
difficult walks, explaining along the way everything they
were seeing. Jeitta is a spectacular grotto in mount Lebanon, and Byblos is an
ancient archeological site of great history and wonderful beauty. We express our thanks to the
administration of Jeitta grotto for receiving our visually impaired students
free of charge. We also thank the Exodus team for their visit to BLESSED.
More
Pictures of the Exodus Team
A Very
Happy Last Day of School
July 1st 2005 was a very happy day at BLESSED. It
was the last day of the academic year and our children had prepared a
special program for the day. But there was more excitement than
anticipated. The promised new school bus that our children and students
had heard a lot about for the last month arrived just on time for them
to enjoy before they went home for the summer holiday. The first
thing we did was to allow all the children to explore it and they all
had a wonderful time. They were followed with the Bartimaeus students
who were equally excited and delighted with it. So the end of year
program that followed was a very happy one. Children celebrated the end
of the academic year with songs, dance, and other activities in the
presence of their parents who eventually caught up with the excitement. Sabah
had prepared a special lunch for the occasion, and everyone went home
greatly exhilarated. All but little Jean-Pierre whose good bye was
accompanied with crying and tears as he realized he was not coming to
school for the very long days of the summer holiday. We praise God for
entrusting us with this wonderful and blessed ministry, and we express
our most sincere gratitude to all our partners, especially BibleLands,
MECO, and CMS who overwhelmed us with their kindness and generosity with
the new school bus. We also express our thanks to
all the parents for their wonderful cooperation in caring for the
children, and finally a special word of thanks to our teachers and
members of staff who made it a truly wonderful year.
Pictures of
the End of Year Program
Pictures of the New School Bus
Three
Students Successfully Complete Baking Level 2
Three students from the Bartimaeus program, Randa
Madani, Nadeen Atallah, and Dolly Atallah, successfully completed the
requirements for the certificate of Baking Level 2. Having passed the
exams, both theoretical and practical, Mr. Leonard Campbell handed them
their certificates on Wednesday 22 June 2005 at the end of the chapel
service. Two other students will have to work hard early next year to
complete the requirements. We express our sincere gratitude to Leonard
for this wonderful achievement and we congratulate the students on their
success.
Grade 5
of Ain Zhalta Evangelical School Visit BLESSED
Mrs. Nicola Alexander, principal of the Evangelical
School in Ain Zhalta, along with 15 girls and boys (Grade 5) visited
BLESSED on Wednesday 8 June 2005. This group came well prepared with
question sheets about their visit. They went around our school seeing
the classrooms and workshops of both our programs. They learnt about
Braille and modern equipment that help visually impaired people. They
saw how reading machines can read the question sheet they had with
them. They visited Leonard's Bakery and heard how our Bartimaeus
students make bread and pastries. They tried coconut fingers which they
liked very much. The students were interested and asked many questions.
We express our thanks to Mrs. Alexander and her wonderful students for
their kind visit.
Sarkissian Bible Study Group at BLESSED
The ecumenical bible study group that meets at the
house of Mrs. Sarkissian, wife of Rev. Sarkissian of the French Protestant
Church in Beirut, visited BLESSED on Friday 27 May, 2005. They were
welcomed with refreshments and coffee which they had with students of
the Bartimaeus program. They then attended
the chapel service which was lead by Rev. George Haddad. They visited the bakery and bought
some scones and biscuits. They also visited classrooms of the St. Luke's
program. Rev. Ernest Reichert of ACO (Action Chrétienne en Orient) who was
in Lebanon also came along. It was also so nice to have him in our
school. We express our thanks to the group for their visit and kind
donation to our school. We also express our thanks to the French
Protestant Church for another kind donation sent to us with Mrs. Sarkissian.
Fantastic News
from BibleLands
Mo Burnley, head of BibleLands overseas operations, had
fantastic news for us. She informed us that BibleLands will send us the balance
needed for buying the new school bus which we badly need. The news delighted
everyone at BLESSED. Our old school bus started giving us trouble this year. It
was a serious problem that was beginning to surface. Our school is located in
Karm El-Zeitoun in Achrafieh which is a poor area in Beirut and is very
congested with traffic. It is literally impossible for parents to drive their
children to our school, and unless we provide transport, we would loose many of
our children. Those of our partners and friends who visited our school know
exactly the problem of the location of our building. Fortunately, we only faced
one tough day this year when the bus totally broke down, and Miss Therese with
the help of some parents managed to bring all the children to school in the
morning, and we were able to fix the bus in time for the afternoon trip. But the
message from our bus was loud and clear. Although our original plan was to
install new cabinets in our kitchen, the new school bus project imposed itself
as the first priority. We consulted with our partners and suggested accumulating
all grants towards this badly needed project. We had already received US$ 2143
from MECO (Middle East Christian Outreach). We also received word from CMS
(Church Mission Society) of a grant of GBP 2000 (US$ 3669). BibleLands sent us
an additional donation of GBP 840 (US$ 1541) which was a nominated gift from
Mrs. J Walker. So we had the total of US$ 7353 available. The cost of the bus is US$
21861, and although with the help of the Ministry of Social Affairs
we will be exempted from registration charges we were quite far from the needed
amount. This was until BibleLands heard of our plight and sent us the fantastic
news on 26 May 2005. There was great jubilation at BLESSED. Children were
delighted as we can now take them all for a school trip rather than
divide them into two groups that will have the same trip on consecutive days; or
simply have some stay at school to be part of the next trip. The visually
impaired students were especially delighted, because the need for the school bus
to bring the children at 8.00 am and take them back at 3.00 pm every day meant
that they were unable to go for trips that are any considerable distance from
our school. The teachers were also very happy, and I (George Haddad) was greatly
relieved that I no more have the nightmare of worrying what may happen when our
school bus broke down. We are truly blessed, and our loving Lord through our
very kind partners, is taking care of our every need. We greatly rejoice and we
praise God and express our most sincere gratitude to BibleLands, MECO, and CMS.
Very Kind Donation
from CMS
Barbara Shaw, the regional manager for the Middle East of
CMS (Church Mission Society - Britain), informed us of a very kind donation to
our school of GBP 2000. The grant will go towards the new school bus project. We
express our sincere gratitude to CMS for this kind donation and for their
partnership and continued support of our school.
Drinking
Water System with Filtration
Work on the drinking water system with filtration began on
Wednesday 24 May 2005. The offer from a local company called HydroTech was
approved. They sent a team of workers and began work. Our school building did not have
a continuous supply of drinking water. We used large water containers in the
kitchen to collect water, and everyone who needed water had to come to the
kitchen. Teachers had to carry large water flasks to carry water to children in
the play ground, and students used to fill small bottles to drink when thirsty.
During the water shortage months (June till November), Edmond got up very early
in the morning, between 1:00 and 2:00 am, he had to carry all the large
containers that were empty from the kitchen to the ground level to patiently
fill them and then carry them, heavy as they are when full, back to the kitchen
on the first floor. The new system will have a collection tank, a stainless
steel core water pump, and multiple filters on the ground level. Water will be
pumped from that tank to another on the roof. Safe drinking water will reach all areas of
our building in insulated pipes, and it will be available to our children and
students through taps 24 hours a day. This is a very important improvement on
our building. Edmond is delighted with this project, as well as Sabah, our cook,
the teachers, and of course, all our students and children. We express our
sincere gratitude to BibleLands and Mr. Khalil Younes for funding this very
important project.
Pictures of the
Drinking Water System
Trip for St. Luke's
Children
Wednesday 18 May, 2005 was the day for two classes (older
children) to go for a trip to the Bikaa valley. A former teacher at BLESSED,
Mrs. Bertha Touma, also arranged for our children to visit the Master Chips
factory. They were able to see all the stages of making a packing chips
(crisps). They were also given plenty of them to enjoyed. Later Mr. Elie and
Mrs. Bertha Touma insisted on having all the children go to their house in
Zahleh where they were invited for lunch. The children had a wonderful day. We
express our thanks to the Master Chips factory and to Mr. & Mrs. Touma for their
very kind hospitality to our children.
Additional
Donation from BibleLands
We received an additional donation from BibleLands of GBP
840 which is a nominated gift from Mrs. J Walker. Although our original plan was
to install new cabinets in our kitchen, the new school bus project imposed
itself as the first priority. Our old school bus is giving us problems, and we
badly need to buy a new one. This grant will go towards that project. We
express our sincere gratitude to BibleLands for their kind support and we
especially want to thank Mrs. J Walker for her very kind donation.
New
Mixer Delivered to Leonard's Bakery
A twenty liter mixer was delivered to Leonard's Bakery on
Wednesday 27 April, 2005. This mixer was badly needed for small dough mixes. The
mixer we have is huge and a smaller one was necessary. Leonard's parents, Rev.
David and Mrs. Myrtle Campbell kindly donated a third of the cost and the rest
came from MECO (Middle East Christian Outreach). Leonard and his students were
delighted with this addition to their bakery. We express our sincere gratitude
to the Campbells and MECO.
Additional
Donation from MECO
We received an additional donation from MECO (Middle East
Christian Outreach) of US$ 1,390. Part of this donation (US$ 400) will go
towards buying the heavy duty mixer for the bakery, and the rest of the donation
will go towartds buying the new school bus. We express our most sincere
gratitude to our partners and friends at MECO for their very kind support of our
school.
Medical
Checkup for all our Students
Dr. Habib Hezkial accompanied with his wife were at
BLESSED on Tuesday and Wednesday April 5 & 6, 2005 for the yearly medical
checkup of all our students and children. Dr. Hezkial is now a familiar face for
our children and some of them tried to go to him for a second time as they
enjoyed the checkup, particularly taking their blood pressure and the sweet that
followed. Those who needed referrals were given reports that need to be followed
up by us and their parents. All our medical records were updated in accordance
with the regulations of the ministry of social affairs.
The Campbells Visit
Leonard
Rev. David Campbell and Mrs. Myrtle Campbell, Leonard's
parents together with his sister, Angela, visited BLESSED from March 31 until
April 7, 2005. They spent most of their time with Leonard because of the
security situation in Beirut, but they also visited a few places. Rev. Campbell
lead the chapel service on Tuesday April 5 and Mrs. Campbell played the piano.
They were able to meet our students and see the wonderful work Leonard is doing
at BLESSED. We were delighted with their visit and the fellowship we had with
them. We also express our thanks to them for their kind donation to our school.
Very
Kind Donation by Mr. Khalil Younes
Mr. Khalil Younes, the grandson of a former student of our
school and a friend and supporter of our school, sent us a kind donation of US$
1500. It will be used for installing a drinking water system (with filtration)
in our building. Our drinking water is currently filled in large bottles on the
ground level and is carried to where it is needed. We also do not have an
adequate filtration system. With funds kindly sent by BibleLands and those by
Mr. Khalil Younes, we can now install the drinking water system. We express our
sincere gratitude to Mr. Younes for this very kind donation.
More Blessings through BibleLand's Donation
Last summer we received a generous donation from
BibleLands towards the Visio Braille system and furnishing our new lounges. When
we bought the furniture last October we were careful as the main aim was the
Visio Braille system. But as the system was bought with all its accompanying
software we could use the remainder of the fund to get what we needed. We bought
a Sony 29 inch TV with table for the lounge of the Bartimaeus students, a second
table for the TV of the St. Luke's children, battery operated emergency lights
for all lounges and bedrooms, a small oven for the guest flat, a portable tape
recorder/CD player for the St. Luke's lounge, and a table for the Life Skills
class. Our partially sighted students and night-duty teachers are delighted with
the TV as the old one used to loose the picture after half an hour of use. A
very hearty thank you to BibleLands.
Weymouth Visit to BLESSED
Anne Weymouth, who used to help as a volunteer with the
Bartimaeus program a few years ago, visited our school with her two children
Matthew and Stephen on Wednesday 2 March 2005. Everyone was so happy to see them
especially the visually impaired girls of the wool workshop. She was able to see
the changes since her last visit two years ago. We are all very sorry that Rick
and Anne were not able to have their residence permit renewed. We pray that one
day that issue will be resolved and they will return to Lebanon to continue the
wonderful work they were doing.
Very Kind Donation
from MECO
Our partners and friends in MECO (Middle East Christian
Outreach) sent us a very kind donation of US$ 1153.22. The donation will go
towards buying the new school bus. We will keep this fund until we receive
enough funds for the project. We express our sincere gratitude to our Christian
sisters and brothers in MECO and we praise God for
their very kind and lasting support of our school.
Very Kind Donation
from "DONOR"
Our partners and friends in "DONOR" sent us a very kind donation of US$ 1500. The donation was used for buying a heavy duty chips (French fries) fryer. French fries
were not on our menu as it was not possible for Sabah, our cook, to use ordinary
frying pans to prepare enough for sixty people. The heavy duty chips fryer
(Imperial IFS40 LPG) was delivered on Wednesday 9 February 2005 so fries are now
on our menu. Students and children are delighted with this addition to our
kitchen. We express our sincere gratitude to our Christian sisters and brothers
in "DONOR" and we praise God for
their very kind and lasting support of our school.
Students from the National Evangelical School in Kfarshima Visit BLESSED
The chairman of LES, Rev. Gabi Bahnan, who is also the
school chaplain of the National Evangelical School in Kfarshima brought two of
his classes to our school on Tuesday 1 and Wednesday 2 February 2005. They went around the
school visiting classes, workshops, and Leonard's Bakery. They were informed
about both our programs and interacted well with our children and students.
Everyone had a good time and they returned to their school better informed about
people with special needs. We express out thanks to Rev. Gabi Bahnan and his
students for their kind visit.
Visio Braille System Delivered and Installed
Thursday 27 January 2005 was a very special day for
students of our Bartimaeus program. The Visio Braille system was delivered and
installed by the local dealer of Freedom Scientific: MEDIALOG. We were able to
acquire this very expensive equipment with funds kindly donated by BibleLands.
This grant in part was donated in loving memory of Mr. A. Walker.
The most expensive part of the system is the Visio Braille
reader and note-taker: the BrailleLite M40. It allows students to read the
content of a computer screen on the Visio Braille line. It also allows them to
enter text on the computer using the Braille keyboard. It can be detached from
the computer and used as a note-taker. The second important part of this new
system is the latest version of the screen reader (computer software) Jaws. This
version is bilingual. It allows students to work in both languages: English
and Arabic. For the first time our students are able to use the computer
for Arabic. Another important addition is the Arabic OCR which is also a first
in our school. You can imagine how much it made our life
easier as we prepare Braille material for our students. The system comes on a
Pentium IV 2.8 GHz computer with hyper-threading which is very powerful and thus
able to achieve those daunting tasks, especially for the Arabic language which
is very complex.
We express our most sincere gratitude to BibleLands and
all the very kind people who support this wonderful charity. We praise God for
their kindness and support. BibleLands' support reinvigorated our school after it
almost closed five years ago. Our partners and friends at BibleLands continue to be wonderful enablers allowing us
to reach our goals and fulfill our dreams in this wonderful Christian ministry
that brings glory to the precious name of our loving Lord. A VERY SINCERE AND
WARM THANK YOU to BibleLands.
New Gas Heaters Delivered
With some of the funds kindly donated by General Antoine
Barakat Foundation we bought five gas heaters (Hellios Superser). Previously
some heaters were shared in two rooms. Every room now has its own heater. We
express our gratitude to Mrs. Denise Barakat for this kind donation and for her
friendship and support of our school.
Roger and Jill Pullen Visit BLESSED
Roger and Jill Pullen who are the educational advisors of
LES (Lebanese Evangelical Society) visited BLESSED on Monday 24 January 2005. They
are old friends of our school and we were delighted with their visit. They were
able to see the changes of the last years in our school. We had a time of
fellowship and prayer with them and their visit was highly appreciated.
Bartimaeus
Students Visit Byblos
Tuesday 25 January 2005 was the day for a trip for the
Bartimaeus program. It was a lovely sunny day. Suheil, Rania, Leonard and Peter
McWhinney (Leonard's friend who was visiting from Belfast) took our visually impaired
students to visit Byblos. They went around the old castle, visited the ancient
port, walked around the old souk, had a picnic lunch, and returned quite
exhausted after a long and happy day.
Pictures of
the Byblos Trip
We received an additional grant towards the Visio Braille
System from BibleLands for the amount of GBP 500. This grant was donated in
loving memory of Mr. A. Walker. Students of our Bartimaeus program are very happy with the addition
of the Visio Braille System to our teaching program as it allows them to use the computer in
Arabic in addition to allowing them to touch read the Braille line for the
content of the computer screen.
Mrs. Jennie Watts also informed us of another grant of GBP
700 from the Diocese of Oxford that went towards the installation of the
additional water tanks. We praise God for our partnership with BibleLands and we
express to them and to their kind supporters our most sincere gratitude. These
generous grants are making an enormous difference in our school and in the lives
of our students and children. Thank you very much.
Kind Donation by
General Antoine Barakat Foundation
Mrs. Denise Barakat sent us a cheque for the amount of US$
1.000 with her Christmas card and greetings for a happy new year. The donation
was from General Antoine Barakat Foundation. As it is an exceptionally cold year
we used the donation to buy extra gas heaters. We express our sincere
gratitude to Mrs. Denise Barakat and General Antoine Barakat Foundation for this
kind donation and for their friendship and support of our school.
Children &
Students Return after the Christmas Holiday
The children and students returned to school after the
long Christmas holiday Monday morning 10 January 2005. It was a lovely sunny day
yet it was still very cold. Leonard Campbell had returned from the UK on January
4th having spent the holiday with his family. His students were delighted to see
him and their only complaint was that the holiday was too long. It was an
amazingly smooth day for a first after a long holiday. The typical scene of a
few sad faces and a rare crying child after weekends was missing. The long
holiday made the children also miss school. That was an exceptionally good start
for the year 2005.
Christmas
Celebrated at BLESSED
Thursday 23 December was the last day before the
Christmas holiday. Children of the St. Luke's program were very excited as they
had prepared a special celebration for the day. They all gathered in the hall
which was decorated for Christmas. Some of the parents also attended. The
children celebrated with song, dance, and pantomime. Students of the Bartimaeus
program also participated, and the climax of the celebration was in the end when
Santa Clause arrived to give every child a present and lots of sweets. We
express our thanks to the person (she wanted to remain anonymous) who donated
the Christmas presents this year .
Students from BESGB &
LESGB visit BLESSED
Mrs. Samira Aranjie accompanied with Grade 11 (Special)
of BESGB (Beirut Evangelical School for Girls & Boys - Rabieh)) visited BLESSED
on Wednesday 22 December 2004. They arrived at 9.00 am bringing with them kind
gifts to our school. They went around the classes and workshops, and met the
children and students of both our programs. They sang carols and heard our
children sing to them. They also offered them sweets. Through their visit they
learnt a lot about special needs children and visually impaired persons. They
later divided their group into two: one interacted with our special needs
children in the playground, and the other had morning coffee with our visually
impaired students. As they were leaving our school another group from LESGB
(Lebanon Evangelical School for Girls and Boys - Louweizeh) arrived for a
similar visit. The group included students from Grades 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, & 12.
They also went around the classes and workshops, met the children and students
of both our programs, sang carols, and heard our children sing to them. They had
presents for all our children and students. They first met the children of the
St. Luke's program, had lots of fun with them, and then they gave them the presents
they brought. They later met students of our Bartimaeus program, played
music and sang carols for them, and they also gave presents to all our visually
impaired students. We were delighted with the students from both schools as they
were wonderful and kind. They interacted very well with our children and
students and displayed a sense of social awareness that both schools can be
proud of. The day was concluded with a service of lessons and carols which
students of our Bartimaeus program prepared and lead. It was a fine conclusion
for a very busy day. We praise God for our kind friends from both schools. (N.B. LESGB & BESGB are the schools where products from Leonard's Bakery are sold).
LES Christmas
Celebration
Although LES (Lebanese Evangelical Society) was going
through a difficult time after the resignation of the
administrative committee, the chairman
of LES, Rev. Ghabi Bahnan, had an excellent idea for the Christmas program this year. He
decided to invite all LES schools and institutions to participate in the
program. The celebration took place on Monday evening 20 December 2004. BLESSED
participated by a small choir from the Bartimaeus program that sang one of the
carols. All other schools also participated and the program was a delightful
one. The students and children from the LES schools totally changed the
difficult atmosphere restoring it to the true Christmas spirit that everyone
enjoyed. The children were given presents by Santa Clause, then all had a buffet
dinner. Many kind volunteers helped serve food to the Bartimaeus group, and our
students highly appreciated the fellowship and kindness by which they were
received. We thank LES for this wonderful idea that we hope will be repeated.
Three Students Pass Bakery Level 1 Exams
Three students finally passed the bakery level 1 exams.
Edmond Sawaya, Nadeen Atallah, and Dolly Atallah were handed their certificates
by Leonard Campbell on Thursday 16 December 2004. We congratulate them on their
success. We especially thank Leonard for his patience and for continuously
motivation them to reach this level. We hope the few students left among those
who did not make it last year will eventually pass this exam.
Christmas Bazaar of
All Saints' Anglican Church
Mrs. Emily Aweida, the chairperson of the women's group
of All Saints' Anglican Church (Arabic Speaking Congregation) invited BLESSED to
participate in the Christmas Bazaar which was held in All Saints' Church -
Beirut on Saturday 11 December 2004. Randa, Leonard, and Suheil went with bread,
scones, other bakery items, and items for both the cane and wool workshops. They
were very well received and were able to sell most of the bread and many woolen
and cane items. We express our sincere gratitude to Mrs. Aweida and the women's
group of all Saints' Anglican church for including BLESSED in their annual
bazaar and for their very kind reception and wonderful support. We also express
our thanks to Randa, Leonard, and Suheil for the effort they put in preparation
for the bazaar and for volunteering to work on a Saturday in order to
participate in the bazaar.
Mr. Hilou Donates a Passap Knitting Machine
Mr. Lewis Hilou kindly donated a Passap knitting
machine to our school. The machine is in a very good condition. Randa and the
girls of the wool workshop were delighted with it as our machines are quite old.
We express our gratitude to Mr. Hilou for this kind donation. We especially want
to thank Mrs. Laure Hilou who facilitated this donation. Mrs. Hilou is a very
dear friend of our school who is the only local person who gives regular
donations to our school. She also brings us regular donations from her family
and friends. We praise God for Christian kindness and love.
Rev. &
Mrs. Chapman at BLESSED
Collin and Anne Chapman visited our school on Friday 26
November 2004. Rev. Chapman, vicar of the International Congregation of ALL
Saints' Anglican Church in Beirut, lead morning chapel and spoke about the
compassion of our Lord and Christ the Good Shepherd. The Chapmans later met our
students and staff during the morning coffee break. They visited classrooms,
workshops, and Leonard's bakery, and saw recent developments in our school which
we were able to implement with funds kindly donated by our partners
including CMS (Church Mission Society) which is a long standing supporter of our
school. We were sad to hear that Collin and Anne were going back to the
UK. We express our gratitude to them for their kind visit.
Rotary Visit
A three member group from the Rotary Foundation
comprising of our dear friend Mr. Tony Asfour, accompanied with Dr. Michael
Abdallah, and Mr. Rassy visited BLESSED on Friday 26 November 2004. The Rotary
Foundation provided us with all the equipment of Leonard's Bakery in addition to
a tumble dryer, two reading machines and a CCTV. Unfortunately the power was out
that morning because of a thunder storm and our students were not baking, but
they were able to see the bakery and meet Leonard who informed them how he is
training our visually impaired students in baking skills. Mr. Asfour informed
Dr. Abdallah how this pilot project was achieved. The group later met Miss
Joumana Abd El-Baki who demonstrated to them how the reading machines and CCTV
are helping our students. We express our gratitude to the Rotary Foundation for
this visit and for their kind support of our school.
Andrea Smith & Parents Visit BLESSED
The psychologist of the Evangelical School in Ain
Zhalta, Andrea Smith, accompanied by her parents, Peter and Anne Smith, visited
BLESSED on Wednesday 10 November 2004. They went around the school and visited
our bakery and workshops buying cane items and plenty of bread to take back with
them to Ain Zhalata. Andrea met our school psychologist Sandra Azaar. We thank
them for their interest in our school and their kind visit.
Bakery Sale at BESGB
The principal of the Beirut Evangelical School for
Girls and Boys in Rabieh, Mr. John Kassis, decided to host a bakery sale in his
school once every fortnight in support of Leonard's Bakery. So Leonard and his
team got ready for the first day which was on Thursday November 4, 2004. Leonard
and Suheil arrived with lots of products, and they were very well received by
the principal, his staff, and the wonderful students of BESGB. Most of the
products were sold, and our students were greatly encouraged. We express our
sincere gratitude to Mr. Kassis, his staff, and the very friendly students of
BESGB for the wonderful reception we received and for their kind support of our
bakery program.
Joint Trip to the Barook Cedar Reserve
Eleven students from our St. Luke's program along with
their teacher Mrs. Karyo had a joint trip to the Barook Cedar Reserve with Grade
6 of the Evangelical School in Ain Zhalta on Wednesday 3 November 2004. Our
students were warmly received at the Evangelical school in Ain Zhalta.
They were offered juice and biscuits. They then attended morning chapel during
which Mrs. Audrey Lee talked about making choices, how Jesus chose his
disciples, and how we ought to choose our friends. She emphasized the need to be
friendly to people who are different, just as Jesus did when he selected his
disciples. We were delighted with the enthusiastic singing of the Ain Zhalta
school children which is certainly much better than many of our local
congregations. Our students were joined later by Grade 6 and all went to visit
the cedar reserve. The guide gave a good introduction then all went for a lovely
walk around the reserve. Mrs. Nicola Alexander, the Ain Zhalta school principal,
was explaining to students along the walk very important things relating to
respecting and appreciating nature. Everyone had a delightful time. We
express our sincere gratitude to Mrs. Alexander and the Ain Zhalta Evangelical
School for their wonderful kindness to our students, and we want to especially
thank them for involving their students with children with
special needs.
MECO
Group from the UK Visit BLESSED
Rev. John Carrick and an 18 member MECO (Middle East
Christian Outreach) group from the United Kingdom visited BLESSED on Tuesday 19
October 2004. They went around the school visiting classrooms, workshops, and
Leonard's bakery. They heard from the principal about the history of the school,
its current programs, and the developments that have been achieved the last few
years by kind donations from our partners including MECO. A few members of the
group had previously visited BLESSED and were happy to see the recent
transformation. Members of the team expressed their support by
buying items from our cane workshop. We express our thanks to the UK MECO group
for taking the time to visit BLESSED and for their kind gesture of support by
buying many items from our cane workshop.
MECO Group from Australia
Visit BLESSED
Mr. Charles El-Hillou accompanied by a MECO (Middle
East Christian Outreach) group from Australia visited BLESSED on Monday 18
October 2004. They went around the school visiting classrooms, workshops, and
Leonard's bakery. They met with the principal and heard from him about the
ministry to visually impaired people and special needs children. Group members
kindly donated funds towards the school and Leonard's bakery. We express our
thanks to the Australian MECO group for taking the time to visit BLESSED and for
their kind donations.
Back to School
The academic year 2004/2005 started on Monday October 4, 2004. Children and
students returned after the long summer holiday. We have a few new
students this year. Mrs. Anias Abou Habib who resigned because she is expecting a baby was
replaced with Miss Fadia Keady who was a night-duty teacher last year. Miss
Antoinette Kortas, our new member of staff, is helping Miss Therese Elias in
the boarding department. Students and children were very happy to see the
changes in our school building, and all were very happy to see each other.
Students of the Bartimaeus program were especially happy to see Leonard
Campbell, our mission volunteer from the Windsor Baptist Church - Belfast, who
returned for a second year at BLESSED.
Angela Campbell Kindly Donates Talking Scales
Leonard's sister kindly donated talking scales to our
bakery. Last year our students had great difficulty using Braille scales. Angela
who heard from Leonard about this problem bought the talking scales and sent
them with him. It is a very sturdy unit and its voice is very clear. It will
make weighing ingredients much easier for our students. We express our sincere
gratitude to Angela Campbell for this wonderful gift.
Leonard Is Back
Our mission volunteer from the Windsor Baptist Church -
Belfast, Mr. Leonard Campbell returned for a second year of volunteer work at
BLESSED. He arrived on Saturday 2 October 2004. Students were delighted with his
return. All look forward to another fruitful year of Christian fellowship and
more training at the bakery. Leonard was very happy with the bakery extension as
it doubled the space and made his work much easier.
Barbara Shaw and Phil Simpson of CMS at BLESSED
Mrs. Barbara Shaw and Rev. Philip Simpson of CMS
(Church Mission Society) visited BLESSED on Friday 17 of September 2004. They arrived form Syria. They were able to see the projects that CMS
supported, and the new bakery extension project that was under construction
towards which CMS donated funds. As it was the last day of the summer program
they were also able to see children of our St. Luke's program. They had a simple
lunch with students of the Bartimaeus program. A very valuable time of
fellowship was spent with Rev. Haddad in which partnership with CMS was
discussed and how it transformed the vision of ministry at BLESSED. Rev. Haddad
and our students and staff expressed their most sincere gratitude to CMS for
their kind partnership and wonderful support.
Projects Completed
Work on the bakery extension project started on
Wednesday September 15. We had the approval of LES for the project and
the contractor started work and finished on time. We also put up a partition in our huge
student lounge in order to have a separate lounge for each program. We replaced
the old furniture in both lounges in addition to that of the guest flat. We also
bought two extra bunk beds for the boys' bedroom in the St. Luke's boarding
department to accommodate new students. We fixed the damp
problem in the roof of our building as the job last summer was a total failure
and a complete waste of money. The new contractor this year did a better job
that is clearly seen. We hope and pray that the winter rain will not prove us
wrong. We replaced some of our very old water tanks on the roof of our
building which were causing part of our damp problem. Funds for all those
projects were kindly donated by BibleLands, CMS (Church Mission Society), MECO
(Middle East Christian Outreach), Antoin Barakat Foundation, and the Christian
Lebanese Canadian Association. We express our sincere gratitude to them all.
Summer Program Includes Bartimaeus Students for
the First Time
Our summer program began on Monday 6 September and
continued until Friday September 17. It included for the first time visually
impaired students who worked on improving their Braille.
Miss Joumana Abd El-Baki gave the course, and everyone was delighted with
the new Perkins Braillers which we received from BibleLands. The
children's program was mainly recreational. They visited many places all over
Lebanon and enjoyed our lovely sunny beaches.
Wonderful News from BibleLands
BibleLands informed us of a generous
donation to BLESSED of GBP 7.808 It will go towards buying a Visio
Braille Line for the Bartimaeus Program and new furniture (couches) for
two student lounges and the sitting room in the mission volunteers' flat.
The Braille computer accessory will enable our students to use one of our
computers (both English and Arabic) for reading the computer screen in
Braille and typing on a Braille keyboard instead of using the sound
enabled screen reader with the standard keyboard. This method is much
faster as it does not require the student to wait for the slow screen
reader to read the text, and most importantly it will enable our students
to use the computer for Arabic which until now they were unable to do, as
most reliable screen readers and reading machines only manage Western
languages. This will be wonderful news for all our students who were
always asking for a way to use computers in Arabic. The rest of the
donation will go towards replacing our old and crumbling couches in all
our lounges in addition to paying the customs and clearance charges (US$
900) for the four Perkins Braillers sent to us by BibleLands. THANK YOU
BibleLands FOR YOUR TYPICAL LOVING KINDNESS. WE PRAISE GOD FOR OUR
PARTNERSHIP WITH YOU!
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