Group 28: August to November 2008

 

FINLAND

Niina Karling (28)

Niina is from Oulu in northern Finland, but she now lives near Helsinki. She is doing her Master thesis in Journalism at the University of Jyväskylä. Niina has worked as journalist for newspapers and TV. She has been interested in the Israel-Palestine conflict since she was 13.

Niina has been placed in Bethlehem.

 

GERMANY

Brigitta Schmitt (61)

Brigitta is a retired teacher who worked nearly 40 years in different school systems. She has been living in Bonn for the past five years and has two children who each have their own families. Between 1993 and 1999, she had a lot of experience in youth exchanges between Israeli and German pupils. She is currently involved in different honorary posts. Her focal point now is to learn more about and contribute to a just peace in the region.

Brigitta has been placed in Jerusalem.

 

Iris Bildhauer (48)

Iris studied Economics in Frankfurt and has been working with the International Christian peace organisation EIRENE in Neuwied for the last seven years in the personnel and financial department. She worked as a volunteer in a Kibbutz in 1981 and 1982 and has since then been very interested in the Israel/Palestine conflict. She has visited the area several times. For her, participating in the EAPPI means getting to know more about the current situation in the West Bank as well as being able to support people with a tiny bit of help.

Iris has been placed in Tulkarem.

 

Kristina Kühl (30)

Kristina Kühl studied Social Work in Germany and works as a counsellor for refugees, managing a team of young migrant volunteers. She is participating in the programme because she wants to get a deeper understanding for people who live in a conflict situation. She hopes by those experiences to be able to contribute to a better understanding of people who come to Germany from different countries.

Kristina has been placed in Hebron.

 

HUNGARY

Tamas Sugar (38)

Tamas is a minister of the Hungarian Reformed Church, in a village not far from the River Danube, called Nagyigmand. He has an interest in working in ecumenical and international teams, and is concerned about what is going on in Palestine and Israel. He worked for the Darwen Churches Partnership in the UK for five years, where he got involved in the refugee problems. Currently he studies the Arts of English and has a hobby of power-paragliding.

Tamas has been placed in Jerusalem.

 

NORWAY

Dirk Gieselmann (44)

Dirk Torsvik Gieselmann was born in a small village called Petershagen in Western Germany. He grew up during the Cold War with long distance rockets stationed on both sides of the German-German border and therefore engaged in the church peace and environment movement at an early stage. During a year of theology studies in Oslo, Norway, he met his future Norwegian wife and in 1993 they moved to Northern Norway where he has since been a pastor in the Lutheran Church of Norway. He has four children.

Besides being near to people in every aspect of their everyday life, the universal church and global thinking is crucial for Dirk as a Christian. Therefore, he has been engaged in Germany and later in the Norwegian Church Aid.

Dirk has been placed in Bethlehem.

 

Linn Aarvik (26)

Linn is from Baldersheim in Norway. She holds a BA in Middle Eastern studies from the University of Bergen and is currently taking a break from her Master studies in social anthropology to serve as an EA in Israel and Palestine. The Middle East has for many years been her main theoretical interest, but now the time has come to enter the field and get involved in a more practical way.       

Linn has been placed in Jayyous.

 

Simi Ann Solaas (27) 

Simi Ann has a degree in multicultural child welfare and development. She has been working in Uganda and Bolivia with street children. She has done a lot of travelling to be able to get to know different cultures and to learn more about all the people who live around the world. She joined the EAPPI to learn more about the situation and is looking forward to sharing what she sees and learns here with others. Simi has been placed in Yanoun.

 

POLAND

Michael Gradon (25)

Michael received a Master degree in Middle East Studies at the Jagiellonian University of Cracow in June 2008. He also holds a Master degree in Religious Studies from the same university. In 2007, he studied Hebrew at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Participating in the EAPPI therefore constitutes his second experience with Israel and Palestine.

Michael has been placed in Hebron.

 

SOUTH AFRICA

Ashwin Pienaar (23)

Ashwin is a Masters student in International Studies at Rhodes University in South Africa. His academic interests include security studies and private international trade law. His thesis uses constructivist theory to explain the IBSA Dialogue Forum. IBSA is a trilateral developmental initiative between India, Brazil and South Africa. When he's not studying, Ashwin likes to play squash, cricket and rugby. He might also be found at his local pub or on the beach with friends. This is Ashwin's second term as an EA.

Ashwin has been placed in Hebron.

 

Dudu Masango (37)

Dudu joins EAPPI for the third time. She holds the best of people's interests close to her heart.

Dudu has been placed in Jerusalem

 

Scott Smith (34)

Scott Smith was born in Canada but moved to South Africa when he was thirteen. He completed his schooling and graduate work in Johannesburg, did post-graduate work in Grahamstown for a year and then moved to Cape Town where he worked as a journalist and editor for five years. Since leaving Cape Town, Scott has been working as a full time writer, commentator and journalist. This is Scott’s second term as an EA.

Scott has been placed in Bethlehem.

 

Simon Bereng Kortjaas (47)

Simon has been an Anglican priest since 1987. He lives in Cape Town with his family, his wife and four children. He is a reserve chaplain in the South African National Defence Force in the Navy. In addition to his Diploma in Theology, he is pursuing a Bachelor of Arts. As a priest, he believes in practical theology and that encouraged him to be involved in the peace process in the local area during the Apartheid era in South Africa. He is happy to be part of the EAPPI and willing to make a difference even if it is in a small way.

Simon has been placed in Jayyous.

 

SWEDEN

Gabriella Engell-Nielsen (30)

Gabriella lives in Sweden where she works with art and craft - as a teacher but also within several social projects. She has experience in non-violence and conflict management.

Gabriella has been placed in Yanoun.

 

Lars-Martin Nygren (48)

Lars-Martin Nygren comes from Arvidsjaur in the north part of Sweden, not far from the Arctic Circle. He is married and father to four sons. He is a minister in the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Sweden and also a chaplain at the Swedish army ranger battalion in Arvidsjaur. He is also a member of the support team to the Foreign Affairs department of Sweden, supporting Swedes abroad in catastrophic situations. He is also involved in ignatian retreat work in the diocese of Luleå. If one part of the body is suffering, the whole body is suffering, says St. Paul, and that's one reason why he has joined the programme. He wants to see, to listen, to stay and to spread information. 

Lars-Martin has been placed in Tulkarem.

 

Lars Söderlund (51)

Lars is a minister in the Mission Covenant Church of Sweden in the city of Falun. He has been studying and working with farming and industries, before becoming a minister some twenty years ago after theological studies. He believes that we as a Christians have a special duty to contribute to reconciliation and work for righteous peace by bringing awareness about the situation to the world. Lars has been placed in Yanoun.

 

Maria Westerlund (42)

Maria Westerlund holds a BA in Middle Eastern studies and she has also studied Hebrew. She has travelled extensively, as well as lived and worked in Canada and Ireland. She is a licensed massage therapist but has also worked with disaster response work and at an integration centre for women. Today she lives in Stockholm with her boyfriend. Maria has a longstanding interest in the region and this is her fourth visit to Palestine/Israel. On previous visits she has, among other things, lived briefly in Beer Sheva and volunteered as a massage therapist in Israel during the conflict with Lebanon.

Maria has been placed in Jerusalem.

 

Tina Kolhammar (26)

Tina Kolhammar holds a degree in Political Science from Lund University, Sweden. She has also studied Middle East Studies and Arabic. Tina is working as a case officer for asylum at the Swedish Migration Board.

Tina has been placed in Hebron.

 

Ulf Tebelius (70)

Ulf from Gothenburg in Sweden, is a retired businessman with a good part of his life spent in the Middle East. He started his international career in Israel 36 years ago by attending a training for irrigation in semi arid zones. A few years later, he worked for UNESCO/UNDP in a coastal protection project in the Nile delta. Later on, he worked for the Swiss company ABB for 25 years, with responsibility mostly for the Arabic speaking countries. He has also been involved in the creation of the Swedish Institute in Alexandria and is collecting literature for the Nobel section at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina in Egypt. He is married with two sons and two daughters. He is interested in most water related subjects. 

Ulf has been placed in Jayyous.

 

SWITZERLAND

Susanne Bieri (59)

Susanne Bieri lives in Biel-Bienne, a bilingual city at the border of the French and Swiss German speaking parts of Switzerland. Susanne was a elementary school teacher for 28 years, teaching children of the age of 6 to 10 years. For 6 years, she was also the headmaster of the school. At the school, they had a programme called Just Community, which trains children in getting involved in school life and participating in gatherings, discussions and democratic votes about daily school matters. It also includes peace making trainings.

After Susanne’s first EA engagement last year, she knew that she wanted to come back one day. She is very attached to the people here and wants to learn more about the conflict and the situation and the conditions on the ground in another part of the country.

Susanne has been placed in Jayyous.

 

Wolfgang Sréter (62)

Wolfgang Sréter was born in Passau, Germany, and studied economics and sociology. He worked as a teacher for many years and is now working as an Author and Playwright in Munich. He is interested in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict since his days in a students dormitory in the sixties when he met Israeli and Palestinian students. 

Wolfgang has been placed in Tulkarem.

 

UK

Judith Hammond (64)

Judith is married with two children, one grandson and one grandchild on the way. She is a trained nurse and midwife and volunteered in Burundi in 1969-1970. In addition, she has worked as an assistant organiser for OXFAM, a health visitor, an English as a Second Language teacher, day centre leader, health researcher, exercise leader for people over 60 and social worker. She has been a Quaker member for 20 years and is interested in peace and reconciliation.

Judith has been placed in Tulkarem.

 

Paul Raymond (24)

Paul Adrian Raymond is a recent graduate from Leeds University in the UK, where he earned a BA in Arabic and Middle Eastern Studies. He has spent time studying in Jordan and Morocco, as well as working and travelling in other Arab countries. He is fluent in Arabic, which he has been studying since 2002. When in Britain, he worships as a Quaker. 

Paul has been placed in Yanoun.

 

Warren Bardsley (68)

Warren was born in 1939 and grew up in urban Lancashire. He became a committed Christian when he was 16 and candidated for the Methodist ministry, entering training college at Manchester in 1958. He was ordained in 1964 and went to Sierra Leone, West Africa, with his wife, Joan, and 8-month-old son, John, in January 1965 to work with the Methodist Church in evangelism church ministry and primary education. Their younger son Richard was born in Sierra Leone in 1965. They returned to Britain in 1973 and for the next 28 years Warren worked in a number of Methodist circuits, both inner city and rural. Warren’s  experience in Africa was formative and in many ways shaped the priorities of his life and ministry – internationalism, ecumenism, trade justice, inter-faith relations, strong commitment to working with poor and marginalised communities and people.  All this is under girded by an incarnational theology which seeks to recognise and discover God at the heart of the world and the human story. He has been strongly influenced by the Celtic vision and has recently become a member of the Iona Community.  

Warren’s interest in Israel/Palestine goes back a number of years and intensified following a visit to the region in 2005 with Garth Hewitt and the Amos Trust.  When in 2006 he heard about the Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel, he felt a strong sense of call to share in the programme. He had been involved in campaigning against apartheid from the 1970’s and recognise this conflict as the great justice issue of our time. This, he feel is the right time for him to be here.  He retired in 2001 and his wife, sadly, died in 2004.   His two sons are now in their forties and he is blessed by four grandchildren, the elder two, now 21 and 18 and the younger, just 4 and 2.

Warren has been placed in Jerusalem.

 

USA

Patricia Woods (55)

Pat holds a Master of Divinity from the Lutheran School of Theology at  Chicago and has served as an ELCA pastor in Oswego, Illinois (a suburb of Chicago) for the last 12 years, developing a new congregation. After a spiritual pilgrimage to the Holy Land in January 2008, she felt called to leave her church and to come back to stand with the Palestinian people, and work beside the Palestinian and Israeli peacemakers opposing the occupation.

Pat has been placed in Bethlehem.