–In 2023 we covered tuition costs for 60 Christian kids. Select to Give Foundation enabled children from the poorest families in Nazareth and Bethlehem to benefit from the excellent education provided by Christian schools.

Over these last ten years, the Israeli government has continued to reduce the budget allocated to Christian schools in Israel, making it even more difficult for the schools to provide education for Christian children. In the West Bank, where Bethlehem is located, Israel does not provide any aid.

In 2020, due to COVID-19, many families were left without jobs or any source of income. Then, just a year after travel resumed fully, the October 7, 2023, attacks stopped tourism and income again. Annual tuition is $ 1200.00 per child. This amount covers the educational expenses, breakfast, lunch, and school supplies for a full year.

A Christian-based education is a foundation for each child’s development and investment in their future.

Help us to make that goal possible by donating $ 100.00 per month to provide a safe, Christian-based education for a child in the Holy Land. $ 1200.00 per year will pay for tuition, food, and all the school supplies for one child. You will receive the name and a picture of the child in whose life you are making a lasting impact.

Please make a life-changing investment in a child’s future with your generous donation!

The “Steps” Center for Child Development is a Church-related organization (NGO), founded in 2015, by the Coptic Orthodox Church in Bethlehem. It is a mental health center for children and families. Therapeutic educational programs work with children who have autism, learning and emotional problems. Patients receive individual therapy, preventive and therapeutic services (psychodynamic, behavioral, special education and play therapy), as well as family and group therapy.

The need for the center emerged as a result of the psycho-social problems which Christian Palestinians are facing due to their minority status directly impacting their living conditions as well as their economic, political, and social isolation. The result of living in a ghetto-like setting, cut off from the rest of the world, without the ability to move and travel freely has exacerbated these problems within the Christian population. Many children are impacted resulting in emotional and psychological disabilities.

Further problems exist concerning children with autism and learning impairments who lack access to professional services (politically instigated) and infrastructure. It is of note that these necessary services are readily available in Jerusalem and even covered by health insurance; however, residents of Palestine (West Bank) cannot access these services because they cannot obtain permits to travel to Jerusalem.

Select to Give provides financing for programs that train Christian Palestinian therapists and teachers. Through training and professional development, we help them implement the latest teaching and therapy programs developed by Israeli, American and European centers for development and education. By financing training for the local population, not only are we providing jobs we are also providing state-of-the-art educational and therapeutic methodology, which helps the children and their families in Palestine while reducing the need to travel to Jerusalem for access to needed services.

The Hogar Nino Dios Home (Child of God Home) is run by the Sisters of Servants of the Lord and the Virgin of Matara, a Religious Family of the Incarnate Word, with headquarters in Argentina. The center, located near the Church of Nativity in Bethlehem, is the home for thirty children with severe mental and physical disabilities. The children’s age ranges from newborns to adults. Many of the children are abandoned or orphaned. A few of the children have families who visit but due to the severity of the disability, the families are unable to care for them in the family homes. The kids are completely provided for and cared for by six sisters (who live on-premises), expert workers, and several volunteers. The children are provided with loving care, as well as medical, therapeutic, and educational programs.

Select to Give helps with a monthly donation which helps pay for basic needs, medication and enhancement of the therapeutic and educational programs for the children.

Select International Tours’ groups often visit the Nino Dios Home while on pilgrimage in Bethlehem, bringing with them much-needed supplies, gifts, and direct financial donations. We are especially grateful to Jeff and Emily Cavins who visit the Home with their groups and have offered generous donations and gifts as well as words of prayer and love so needed and appreciated by the sisters and the children.

Volunteer Opportunity: If you are interested in volunteering your time, the sisters are in need of help. They are looking for volunteers who can commit a minimum of one month of their time to help take care of feeding, bathing, playing with the children as well as cooking and cleaning. If you have experience working with children with disabilities and can donate a your time please contact us HERE.

Sharing the Bread is a program within the Select to Give Foundation created to help local families earn much-needed revenue and to introduce American Christians to an authentic local lifestyle, among the Living Stones of Bethlehem.  The program creates bonding and fellowship amongst Christians from very different socio-economic backgrounds who share one thing in common: Their love of Jesus Christ Our Lord and Saviour!

During their pilgrimage to the Holy Land, groups from the U.S. are invited to join a local Bethlehem family for dinner of a home-cooked meal in their homes. The program builds bridges by providing a glimpse into the local culture and way of life. By enjoying the traditional Middle-Eastern hospitality, savoring a meal, and chatting with the families American Christians learn about the daily lives of their Christian brothers and sisters in the Holy Land.

This program was pioneered by Select International Tours in 2015. Many pilgrims and group leaders, traveling with Select International, have shared their positive experiences with us, confirming that this unique program is one of the highlights of their pilgrimage. All the proceeds of this program are donated directly to help the families.

In 2019 over $ 100,000 was donated directly to the Christian families in Bethlehem through the Sharing the Bread program. Select to Give and Select International Tours do not charge any administrative fees for the work involved in supporting this program. We are blessed to have the help in Bethlehem, of a local Christian resident, who is the administrator for Select to Give and the coordinator of Share the Bread program. Shibly Kando generously donates his time in administering the Share the Bread program to help his fellow Christians. Currently, 63 families are taking part in the program.

Healthcare is a fundamental human right, yet for many living in Bethlehem, it remains a luxury. Specialized care is especially costly and often inaccessible. Select to Give, in collaboration with Elizabeth Westerhoff—a volunteer nurse from the USA—has launched Select to Care. This new program connects volunteer medical professionals with facilities in Bethlehem that serve the region’s poor and underserved populations.

Select to Care acts as a critical link, directing specialized care through highly skilled volunteers, while also raising funds to cover essential expenses such as medical equipment, medication, and therapies.

The success of Select to Care is entirely dependent on the generosity and skill of the global medical community. If you are a medical professional—including physicians, surgeons, nurses, physical therapists, occupational therapists, or other specialists—who is interested in volunteering your time and skills to make a direct, tangible difference in the lives of the people of Bethlehem, we urge you to reach out to us today. Your expertise can change a life.

If you would like to help provide funding for–or donate–necessary medical and/or therapeutic equipment, we need your help. The needs change, so please reach out for the most up-to-date information and a list of requested equipment.

You can learn more about Elizabeth’s story and Select to Care HERE.

The economic hardship in the Holy Land since the October 7 attacks has increased the need for financial support to meet basic human needs. Select to Give has donated $25,000 to the Catholic Near East Welfare Association to help support the Christian population in Gaza. Select to Give continues to provide financial assistance to Christian families who rely on tourism to feed and care for their families.