Saturday, October 31

Today was an action packed day. In the morning we visited Saviour Episcopal School in Zarqa, Jordan. It is private school associated with the Anglican Diocese of Jerusalem. SES, as it is known is run by an energetic supremely capable woman, Duaa Bisharat, who happens to be married to an Anglican priest, Faeq Haddad. Although it is an Anglican school, 60 percent of the students are Muslim.  It was founded in 1955, on a shoestring and has since grown to 450 students K-12. The school's mission is to foster "permanent learning, ability to solve problems,abroad vision, belief in God, and strike a balance between a spiritual and social life." The kids are exposed to science, English lit, history, and at least this year, IT; in other words, a modern relevant education. Even conservative Muslim parents value this and are willing to send their kids to a Christian school to obtain it. BTW, we spoke with some of the kids; they are great, and are like any other kids that you may know. Tuition is about $2,000 a year, but like any private school, that doesn't cover costs. So Duaa also functions as her own development officer.  If anyone is interested in supporting the school, I can let you know how.
After a delicious lunch at the school, we headed for Jerash, one of the most spectacular Graeco-Roman archeological sites anywhere outside of Athens or Rome.