January 9, 2009 / 13 Tevet, 5769

In the shadow of the conflict raging in Southern Israel, the Breckler family from Australia experienced firsthand successful coexistence between Jews and Arabs.

Last Sunday, January 4, 2009, the extended Breckler family, from Perth and Melbourne, Australia, visited a Net@ class in Jerusalem.

The family members included eight adults and eights youths of varying ages.  They heard an overview about the Net@ program and spoke with its participants.

One third of the students in the class are Arab youths from the Bet Tzefafa neighborhood in East Jerusalem, and the other two-thirds are Jewish youths.

The Breckler family asked to learn about the atmosphere in the class in light of the current military conflict in Gaza, and they were happy to hear that the fighting has had no effect on the relations between Jews and Arabs in the Net@ program.

After a candid conversation between the donors and the program’s participants, the children – both those in the program and those visiting fro Australia – did some activities together on the computer and managed to build a good relationship between one another.