Dear Friends of the Rebuilding Alliance,

Dear Friends of the Rebuilding Alliance,

Last week in Jerusalem, hundreds of people joined Combatants for Peace and the Parents’ Circle to protest the Israeli prosecutor’s decision to dismiss the case of Abir Aramin for lack of evidence despite numerous witnesses and an autopsy report. Abir Aramin is the little girl shot by Israeli soldiers on January 16th as she was walking home from school in the West Bank town of Jerusalem. Her case created a worldwide outpouring of sadness and solidarity in part because Abir’s father, Bassam Aramin, is the well-known co-founder of Combatants for Peace.

This week and through the weeks to come, the Rebuilding Alliance and Combatants for Peace ask your help to create a living memorial to Abir. “Abir Aramin’s Garden: a Safe Place to Grow” will bring former combatants (Israeli and Palestinian) together to build a memorial playground on the grounds of Abir’s school. Together we seek to pursue justice for Abir, and demand safety in school zones for children in the Occupied Territories. We need your help.

Following plans generously donated by a C4P landscape architect (see below), the former fighters who make up Combatants for Peace seek to transform the school grounds into a beautiful and safe place where children can be children and safely step out of the Occupation and into their imagination.

Abir’s Garden is appropriately ambitious and will be completed in stages as funds are raised, beginning with the playground area. We hope to complete this first section early in the new school year to show Abir’s friends that there are people who know their story and care about their plight.

The first stage of the Garden will cost $25,844.

If we can raise that by September 1st, C4P will complete stage one by the end of that month;
If 52 sponsor organizations give $500 each, we will meet our goal;
If each of the 1600 people who signed the condolence letter donate $15 we will reach our goal;
Please DONATE NOW.
If we are in the top 6 fundraising projects at Network for Good by Sep. 16 , Hanes Corporation will give a matching donation of $10,000. Spread the word: put Abir’s Garden Charity Badge on your blog or MySpace!

We gratefully accept individual or group donations of any amount. Donations are tax deductible in the U.S. and comply with restrictions under the Patriot Act.

SPONSOR ABIR’S GARDEN
We are actively seeking sponsor groups and individuals who are willing to sign-on for the life of the project. Donate $500 via Network for Good and we will list your organization’s name or your name on the Abir’s Garden webpage as a sponsor.

Donate Now and you will be sent regular updates and action alerts on the project, including:

Information to educate your members and community about the project;
Progress reports on fundraising for and construction of Abir’s Garden;
Legal updates on the dismissal of Abir Aramin’s case and the soon-to-be-filed appeal;
Coaching, online and via phone, to help your members invite their congressional representatives to Contact Congress Telecons.
SIGN UP FOR CONTACT CONGRESS TELECON
Our first Contact Congress teleconference call is scheduled for Monday, August 27, 2007. Speakers include Israeli attorney Michael Sfard who is filing an appeal on behalf of the Aramin family, Bassam Aramin who is Abir’s father and Avichay Sharon, both of C4P, and Cindy Corrie, board member of the Rebuilding Alliance.

Please Register Here to join the call. When you sign up, we will email you a formal letter of invitation, case-to-date summary, and a phone script to use to invite your elected representatives to also join the call. Ask them to join the call to learn the implications for U.S. policy under the Leahy Law which cuts off U.S. foreign operations funding if the Secretary of State has credible evidence that any unit of the security forces of a foreign country has committed gross violations of human rights, unless the government of such country is taking effective measures to bring the responsible members of the security forces unit to justice.

Please join us in educating our representatives about the case and it’s implications for the safety of all Palestinian children. The teleconference call can host over 500 people and by asking our elected representatives to convey our concern, we hope to make our presence felt so that this time, justice can prevail.

My board and I are happy to answer any questions you may have and we welcome your suggestions. Please feel free to call.

In rebuilding peace,
Donna Baranski-Walker
Executive Director of the Rebuilding Alliance
1 650 325-4663