The Jerusalem Health Department made their annual visit to the Medical Department and issued a positive report about its services. These services will even further improve after the renovation of this department has finished. The patients in the Palestinian areas (West Bank) who cannot enter Jerusalem anymore, have been taken care of in the Outreach Clinics.

In Taybeh we saw a fair amount of patients, while in Izzariyeh (Bethany) the new premise finally became available in July. This new clinic is more spacious and has been furnished an equipped through a grant from the Dutch Representative Office in Palestine, making it  a cheerful place where children and mothers can relax awaiting treatment or vaccination.

The Bethany clinic is located in a Medical Center that was officially opened by the Minister of Health in October. A party had been organized with boy scouts and music attracting many local people and children who also enjoyed the soft drinks and sweets.

The staff of the Social Section have been assisting mothers and youth with their problems through individual and group counseling. The mothers attended many lectures about specific subjects given by professionals in the field such as civil and women's rights, the life cycle of women, social problems, abuse, health hazards, etc. These are usually followed by a lively discussion that also acts as group- counseling.

Expressive Arts Therapy sessions are given to women and teenagers in different courses. These sessions have really made a great difference for the participents. They have learned where their anger and frustrations come from and how to address those feelings. It has raised their self-esteem and changed their social behavior in a positive way. Most important is that these mothers want their daughters to have more opportunities and education, as well as more freedom in determining their life.

The Educational Section finished three courses of special education and speech therapy. Some children need more than just a course for an educational problem and also need speech and/or play therapy. It requires the supervisor of this section much time to make a schedule that combines all necessary lessons. Evaluation at the end of the course with feedback from parents and school reports will determine if a child needs another course.

One teacher has been trained in music therapy and has started a pilot project with a group of seven children suffering from emotional problems. The preliminary results are very good and we will expand the music therapy in the coming year. We plan to create a sound-insulated room for this program so as not to disturb the other education sessions.

The Psychology consultant screened 155 children for educational and psychological problems and advised parents and teachers about the treatment approach. These are children referred by our own teachers or by schools and doctors from outside. There are always children on the waiting list but because of our financial limitations, the psychologist can only be employed part time. Most children received counseling, special education and / or play therapy by the staff of the Center. Occasionally the child had to be referred to another institution for specialized care. Many of the younger children with social or behavior problems follow one or more courses in Play Therapy . It functions as part of the psychology and educational sections and is increasingly in demand as parents and teachers become more aware that early intervention can prevent worse problems later.

It is always a joy to watch a small group of children learning in a playful manner to express themselves and internalize concepts as left and right, different shapes and colors. When they have done well they may play in the ball-pool or on the computer. Usually more boys are enrolled in the play therapy courses, many for hyperactive behavior. It has been a very busy year for this section.

The play therapist also works part time in the Cultural Department, teaching Drama, Clowning and Folklore dancing (Dabkeh) to children and youth. This year the youth performed frequently during celebrations and festivals in different locations, providing entertainment, and making fun of well-known stressful daily situations like the checkpoints. It has a psycho-therapeutic effect as laughter relieves pent-up anger and frustration In the isolated villages in the West Bank children have never seen a live clown or been part of an inter-active show.

The SCC youth group took first prize in a sports-and games event and a Dabke competition. They proudly carried the trophies to the Centre where they will be displaye in a special cupboard. Now that the Dabkeh group is becoming more professional we need to have our own Dabkeh costumes for which we are currently seeking funds.

Three holiday camps took place this summer, a three-week day camp for children with active participation of volunteer youth leaders, a three-week workshop camp for 80 youth from Jerusalem, and a sleeping camp for 80 teenagers from different areas of the West Bank and Jerusalem. The absolute highlight for the West Bank teenagers was a trip to Jaffa and the beach, for most of themthis was the first time that they saw the sea; a poignant and emotional experience for all of us on many levels.

We are very grateful for the work that volunteers from the UK (Highway Project) and America did this summer. Without them we could not have done all the activities that we were committed to do. They cleaned up and prepared the outside area and other places so we could hold our usual summer camp for children in the Center.

The coming year we will still have to cope with more renovation work being done. We hope that by summer another part of the building will be ready with the outside area, as we have planned an active summer program with workshops and holiday camps.

The new computer room should be ready by that time for general courses and special programs for children, young people and mothers. Computer literacy has become so important for the young generation to gather general knowledge and promote future career possibilities that we want to give them the opportunity to practice and explore this medium.

On the request of a school for girls in the Old City the Social Section has started a pilot program for teenage girls with weekly lectures about topics outside the school curriculum but of great importance for this age group with counseling and expressive arts therapy sessions. The program also includes sessions with the mothers and teachers, to improve communication and relations between parents, teachers and children. The preliminary results are very positive. This program might be extended to other schools in the future.

SCC has also started re-organizing the management in sequence with the renovation to streamline the work. This will receive further attention in 2008.

A major problem has been the serious drop in the value of the US dollar, the main currency of donations in the Holy Land. With revenues in local currency going down and prices for basic commodities going up this has posed a heavy burden on the budget.

We thank all the people who gave or sent us donations, either directly or through one of the donor organizations. It has meant a great deal to us to receive your moral and financial support.

We welcome your visits to the Spafford Center to see our work.

We especially thank:

- Al Madad Foundation for their annual grants
- American Colony Hotel for their annual support as well as sponsoring fundraising
    dinners.
- The Beasly Trust of Christ Church Cathedral, New Orleans, LA,
- BibleLands UK who has supported SCC for more than 15 years in different ways.
- The Brigham Young University for their supplies of material goods for needy families
- Caritas Organisation for their cooperation in the Medical Outreach and projects in
    Taybeh
- A Corporate donor who continued their support of the medical programs over the last
    year
- Highway- Projects for organizing volunteers from the UK
- Irish Aid of the government of Ireland supporting operational costs and cultural activities.
- Reverend Nicola Jones and all the people coming with her on a pilgrimage bringing
    toys, clothes and funds to support the work.
- Karim Rida Said Foundation who supported the Speech Therapy Section
- Linbury Trust supporting the work of the Psychology Section
- Medical Aid for Palestinians UK, for their support of the Outreach medical clinic.
- The Representative Office of the Netherlands in Ramallah for the grant that helped to
    furnish and equip the medical clinic in Izzariyeh (Bethany)
- The Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency for their generous grant to
    the renovation of the building in the Old City.
- The Friends of Spafford Children's Centre , UK (FSCC) and of the Spafford Children's
    Centre Association, USA (SCCA) who helped in raising needed funds
- VDU Care who with their gift also supported the work in the medical outreach projects.
- The Welfare Association, Old City Rehabilitation Project, who secured funding for and is
    executing a major renovation of our building.