March 15, 2024
We promised to keep you informed on what we’d be doing now since the war has not allowed us to continue our projects in the South. Our little team met last week to discern what the Lord wants of us. No one can get in, only a few large Church relief organizations who have local staff there can get the much-needed water and food in to keep people alive. We concluded that we cannot help them ourselves now, so we must join with other relief organizations who can do so. These are the steps I took before our meeting:
- Recovered our money from the bank in G. City and put it in a new account
in Jerusalem in the same bank. This took several trips to Jerusalem to do.
Fr. George has the second signature on this “Daughters of Charity” account.
- Visited other agencies that are getting water and food to the people. Since the
The attack on the Orthodox Church, which left 17 people dead, has caused world attention to this Orthodox parish and our Catholic parish. Between the two, they are harboring 400 to 600 Muslim and Christians whom they are trying to feed. They are completely cut off from the South where the food is being trucked in. Other homeless people, who never left the North for the South with the majority of the people, also are served in the two parishes. Fr. Gabriel, the parish priest, was outside the Strip when the war began. He now works full time at the Patriarchate trying to get relief to the people in these parishes. These days he is trying to get fuel and flour in. Two or three days a week they serve a hot meal to these refugees. Sisters from the three communities there help while also caring for the thirty handicapped children with the Missionaries of Charity, with whom we stayed when we were there.
What appears now is that this war will continue for months ahead. No one will be allowed to enter the South until the war is finished. We have no idea if there will be a government there that will issue permits to enter. Our days of going down and having our programs seem to be over. Sabah, who has been running our programs for 18 years, has gotten out with her husband to go to Egypt. I’ve had no direct news of Wasel our Social Worker. Many of our friends are refugees in the south.
If you are interested in still funding us, know that your funding now goes toward the salaries of our two staff and donations go to four other people who have been working with us for about 20 years. They all live in the south of the Strip. This money is keeping them and their large families alive. Your donations will go monthly to the Latin Patriarchate which cares for 200 to 400 people in the Catholic parish and in the Orthodox parish where they have been refugees for months. They provide meals and water to these families. The cost of a meal varies as the food that is available and its price changes. One priest and several sisters care for this large number of people. Many have died due to injuries and lack of medicine and medical care.
Every two months we will meet and discern with the Lord what direction to proceed. We will still be helping Christians and Muslims by saving their lives, which is important to us.
Every month you can follow events with us on our website. It is www.daughtersofcharity-gaza-blogspot.com.Things are constantly changing. We are committed to continuing to help the people, especially in this critical time by providing the basics of water and food. If the war stops, then people may need other essential items. In our 27 years of existence, we’ve helped after four wars, yet none as destructive as this one.
Know that you are in our prayers as you decide whether or not to continue to assist us. In any event, we understand your decision.
The pictures are sent to me by our past driver who is an outstanding husband and father. He is now volunteering to help the children of the refugee camps by organizing different activities for them. He and his family are refugees suffering from hunger and the same diseases as the population in the south.
Blessings,
Sr. Frantiska DC,
Fr. George SJ,
Sr. Juliana Notre Dame of Sion, and
Sr. Susan DC
