A brief report on the work and achievement of the National Society for the Visually Handicapped in Jerusalem during the past five years.

             Distinguished benevolent members of the National Society for the Visually Handicapped in Jerusalem: Municipalities, companies, societies, establishments, schools and individuals.

I have the honour to voice to you, jointly with the honorable members of the Board of Trustees, our sincerest gratitude from the Holy City of Jerusalem for the unfailing support accorded to this. society whose prime objective is to provide a philanthropic service to those who have lost their sight. However, this brief illustrated report is being prepared in order to focus on gleams of the work and achievement of this society for the visually handicapped both in the teaching and cultural avenues on the one hand and training and rehabilitation on the other.

Despite the severe political and economical climates under which we labour the society supported by you has continued in holding high the banner of humanity, compassion and education. Further, the society has diversified its aims and objectives amongst which is the administration of Al-Shorooq school for girls. This school has more than fifty blind girls who receive education and rehabilitation covering all stages, in addition they are being cared for socially, economically and health wise. It is also worthwhile noting. that the school embraces a good number of blind children who were destined to be left stranded and unattended to.

Consequently, the goals and achievements of the society may be summarised as follows:-

Providing cultural and educational material to all the blind, through its library.
 Providing education to all blind girls from kindergarten to university education.
 Providing rehabilitation and literacy courses at the society's school.
Sending students abroad for further education-There are two girls who study physiotherapy in Tunisia, and four girls are being trained in the Lebanon on the use of the telephone switchboards.
Providing humanitarian assistance in every respect to all blind males and females.

The society's library contains 6,000 books dealing with various subjects. There are also the children's library with over two hundred books and the sound library with one hundred and fifty books. This is in addition to providing all sorts of necessary equipments to the  blind including braille machine mach ferders, braille paper, canes, watches, alarm clocks, frames, styluses and various entertainement devices.

With great pride we say that this establishment is unique in the Middle East with regard to the assistance given to the blind. It is the hub and the main artery which nourishes other establishments in the West Bank and the Gaza strip (numbering eleven establishments and 200 individuals) with culture and education.

This is our present situation:- But what about future aspirations? In brief, we are after securing a suitable place to include the society's activities: school, library, kindergarten, and rehabilitation centres. This place is available provided we secure enough money to buy it. It is Al Shorooq school and the plot of land on which it is erected. It is owned by the Bible Land Society and is worth 650,000 Jordan Dinars. This sum of money does not include a monthly payment of Jordan Dinars 4,000 being the school expenses. We, therefore, voice our plea in the name of God to all those conscientious persons to assist us in having hands on deck in order to bring the ship to the shores of safety and give enlightement to those who have been deprived of the grace of sight.

Finally, we are confident that you will not hesitate in bolstering our needs so that this national society will remain a lofty pillar in the heart of the Holy City of Jerusalem.

Helen Shehadeh

Executive Director

1986