The Shepherd Society

قراءة في العربية

The Shepherd Society was founded in 1996 in Bethlehem is a Christian charity to help the poor and needy families in Bethlehem and Gaza Strip. The shepherd society is considered the social services department of the Faculty of Bethlehem Bible Society, Where how it works is based on the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ, who urges helping to the poor and all those in need and to show his love in a practical way, without distinction of sex or religion. In 2010, The Shepherd Society got an official registration as an association of charitable in the Palestinian Interior Ministry.

The Shepherd Society is part of the Palestinian society institutions, which is trying to cooperate with the other charities to repay the needs of poor families; it is the largest percentage between the layers of the Palestinian society. The following are the programs that the institution provides assistance to poor and needy families:

1. The distribution of food baskets: as many of the breadwinners of poor families cannot afford basic food for their children on an ongoing basis, the Shepherd Society are providing in order to maintain the health of these people, and avoid diseases caused by lack of nutrition.
2. Medical aid: Shepherd works to provide medicines and contribute to the payment of the costs of other medical treatments such as surgery and laboratory tests and Stratified image and MRI for individuals from poor and needy families.
3.  Job creation: Shepherd society provides temporary jobs for the unemployed, with the aim of reducing the severity of unemployment in the Palestinian society and it works on promoting the process of development of the society.
4. Supporting the development projects: the shepherd institution helps the breadwinners of poor families who own professional capabilities through the provision of grants to start small projects in order to get a steady income through which they can provide the basic needs of their families.
5. Electricity and water bills: in order to provide basic services to the poor, such as electricity and water, the institution is contributing to the payment of electricity and water for those who cannot afford paying and who are threatened to lose these services.
6. The school fees: they believe in the right of the Palestinian citizen to access to education, the Shepherd Society will pay part of the school fees for students from poor families so that they can attend the educational process in order to create an educated generation.
7. Gaza Strip: Given the state of the Gaza Strip of the difficult living conditions of poverty and unemployment as a result of population overcrowding, the siege and the large number of political and military conflicts in which, the Shepherd Society and through the church there will help the poor and distressed and displaced families by providing food, medicine, clothing, payment of the medical treatment costs and the provision of milk for the children. As a result of power outages for long periods for a lot of houses in Gaza, the Shepherd Society is installing solar panels for houses of poor families; especially the sick and the elderly who need a continuous power supply to avoid any health complications that may occur to them. To reduce poverty and unemployment, they are supporting small development projects to these poor people so that they can get a steady income to provide a living for their children.