By TAMARA ZIEVEKKL-JNF donated the first major park in Usfiya.(photo credit: Courtesy)
NORTHA park was inaugurated last week in Usfiya, made possible by an American donor and Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael-Jewish National Fund. Present at the inauguration ceremony were Usfiya Mayor Wajeh Kayouf, KKL-JNF representatives, council staff and dozens of students.The park cost some NIS 1 million, donated by Prof. Yechiam Yemini of Columbia University, who in his youth was involved in a student exchange program between Usfiya and his childhood home of Yagur. Yemini noted during the ceremony that it was important for him to contribute to the Druse community and to name the park after his parents, who he said “educated me to love others and to be tolerant.”During the ceremony, third-grade students from Usfiya sang the song Together in Arabic. Kayouf thanked Yemini for his donation, also acknowledging KKL-JNF for its willingness to collaborate, promote and execute the project. “This park will contribute to the enjoyment of Usfiya residents of all ages, and will make the children of Usfiya smile,” he said.The park covers an area of about 0.2 hectares (about half an acre) and is the first major park established in Usfiya. At the donor’s request, a focus group was created to discuss components of the park to ensure residents’ needs would be met. KKL-JNF subsequently designed the park with sports facilities, entertainment facilities for all ages, picnic tables and walking trails shaded by trees.Haifa puts on cantorial concertA concert of Jewish songs and poems was scheduled for this Thursday night at the Haifa Auditorium, featuring cantorial works by Josef Rosenblatt, Esti Kosovitsky and others. International cantors Yitzchak Meir Helfgot and Yaakov Motzen were set to accompany the Ra’anana Symphonette Orchestra and the Israel’s Voices cantorial choir, with Moses Adorian as MC and Yankele Rotner conducting.MK Nissan Slomiansky, Shmaryahu Herman, director of the Education Ministry’s Torah culture department, and Haifa City Council member Shay Blumenthal were all expected to attend.The annual cantorial concerts in Haifa are popular and usually filled to capacity; the production is a collaboration between the municipality and the Education Ministry.Police nab 2 in Nazareth on suspicion of attacking man Police on Sunday arrested two suspects in their 40s on suspicion of attacking a 67-year-old man in Upper Nazareth and stealing his wallet. The two were taken for questioning and were set to be brought for a remand extension.Fire causes air pollution in Nesher and Yagur The Environment Ministry announced on Sunday that due to a Friday night fire at a Haifa sewage treatment plant, there was an unusual level of air pollution in the area of Nesher and Kibbutz Yagur.The ministry said various pollutants emitted into the air could cause heart and lung disease, and recommended that children and sensitive populations refrain from outdoor physical activities; it also advised the Education Ministry to cancel sport classes at area schools.CENTERTAU hosts Chinese delegation for innovation and entrepreneurship program Senior executives at leading Chinese companies were scheduled to arrive in Israel this week to participate in a week-long program on innovation and entrepreneurship, hosted by Tel Aviv University’s Lahav Executive Education center at the faculty of management. Topics to be presented to the Chinese group include the Israel innovation phenomenon; recognition of culture and history; Israel’s economic and political arena and its impact on innovation; and the ultra-Orthodox community.The Lahav Executive Education spokesman stated, “The participants in the Chinese group will meet with some of the primary opinion leaders in Israel, with the understanding that innovation in business goes hand-in-hand with a rich, thriving culture.”‘The Other Body’ staged at Tmuna theater This week, the curtain rose on The Other Body at Tel Aviv’s Tmuna Theater. The three-part performance by Nataly Zukerman and Atalia Branzburg deals with Zukerman’s accident at age 12 which left her paralyzed.Zukerman tells the story of her successful rehabilitation, relating how “mundane and insignificant actions and moments like climbing stairs, standing on one leg and even reading a bedtime story have become the journey of coming to terms with my body.” The performance also deals with love, relationships and scars left by former lovers.The show was created within the framework of the A-Genre Festival 2013 at Tmuna, and as part of the Actor-Creator-Researcher course at Tel Aviv University’s department of theater arts.Police arrest 24 in Petah Tikva for criminal activityDozens of Petah Tikva police carried out a widespread operation on Sunday morning, knocking on the doors of 28 homes throughout the city on suspicion the tenants were involved in criminal activity.Carrying search warrants, the officers searched the homes for weapons, drugs, money and stolen property.Police seized three pistols, a rifle, various drugs, hundreds of thousands of shekels, tens of thousands of dollars and euros, and many checks, all which had been hidden. They also seized a lot of property suspected to be stolen from city electronic stores and drugstores.The suspects were all taken to the police station for questioning.Chief Supt. Tal Fikerbitz of the Petah Tikva station stated: “The Israel Police will use all means available to prosecute lawbreakers, for the quality of life of the city’s residents,” referring to the operation as “another step in combating serious crime.”140,000 children sign up for ‘summer holiday school’ Two weeks ahead of the beginning of summer vacation, over 140,000 children had signed up for their local “summer holiday schools.” According to Education Ministry data, 30,000 children signed up in the North, 25,000 in the South, 21,000 in the Tel Aviv District and 18,000 in Jerusalem.The highest enrollment was seen in the big cities, although in Rahat, a larger number – 3,195 – registered.According to the Education Ministry, all 250 local authorities consented to join the summer school project, and 5,000 teachers and managers had joined the program by the beginning of the week. The school will operate from July 1 to 21.SOUTHWoman, 90, found dead in Beersheba in suspected murder A 90-year-old woman was found dead in Beersheba last weekend in a suspected murder. Police said there were signs of strangulation on the neck of the deceased and that they were questioning her 50-year-old son, who they said had mental health issues.Man’s corpse found in parked car The body of a 40-year-old man was found on Sunday in a parked car on the Beersheba–Masada road; police launched an investigation.100 kids in Dimona get computers through ‘laptop for every child’ initiativeOne hundred children from economically disadvantaged families received laptops last week within the framework of the “laptop for every child” project. The initiative aims to reduce gaps in education and welfare in Israeli society.The Local website reported the children received the new computers in a ceremony that was attended by friends, family and teachers, as well as Mayor Benny Biton and education and welfare department head Moshe Nahum, among others.The laptop for every child program was founded in 1996 by a group of business owners, with patronage from Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu; the project is currently operated by Deputy Minister Ophir Akunis.In addition to providing the children with computers, the project also allows for 45 hours of instruction, Internet access, training and a threeyear warranty. The mayor said the city administration will do everything in its power to make the best tools available for the city’s children.“Dimona has a wonderful education system, perhaps among the best in the country and definitely the best in the South,” Biton said.
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