February/March 2024
Due to the tremendous needs in Israel, Ed Hill Tours ownership and staff felt we must do something tangible to support and show our love for Israel and it’s people. After all, EHT has been actively organizing and producing Holy Land tours since 1962.
This special Solidarity Mission was designed for individuals who typically had been to Israel, were not fearful of going, and wanted to be part of doing something to help. The itinerary included visits to hospitals, Christian schools, and hands-on volunteer work wherever we were needed along with some scheduled touring each day. We spent 1 night in Tel Aviv visiting Hostages Square and Sheba Hospital where most wounded IDF soldiers are being treated. Then we went to Jerusalem and upon entering the city we immediately went to the Christian Friends of Israel School (CFI) where our team did clean-up work, washed windows, and distributed clothing for pick-up by the needy. Note: In so many locations there was no one left to perform these tasks because so many workers had left following October 7.
Highlights of our time in and out of Jerusalem: Taking monetary donations to Friends of Zion Museum along with clothing to support the work they had been doing for displaced Israelis from the north of Israel and near Gaza. We also visited with many Holocaust survivors supported by Friends of Zion. We distributed clothing, shoes, blankets and toys everywhere we went including King of Kings Congregation, First Baptist Church in Bethlehem, and City of Life Ministries in Sderot near the Gaza border. Our team went to a large grove to pick oranges for several hours because again, workers had left and there was no one to pick the ripe fruit. The saddest time of our entire trip was the visit to the site of the music festival where 364 young people were murdered and more taken hostage.
We also visited several “must” sites for Christians: The Garden Tomb, the Garden of Gethsemane, and two sites that many in our group had not previously visited: Solomon’s Quarries (Zedekiah’s Cave), and the Herodium, a man-made mountain and Herod’s burial site outside Bethlehem.
We stayed in Dan Panorama Hotels in both Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, enjoyed excellent full breakfasts & dinners daily, farewell dinner at our favorite restaurant – Piccolino, private deluxe coach, and we were led for the entire trip by Shlomo Eyal, an incredible guide and longtime friend.
This Solidarity Mission was open to everyone and included both pastors and non-pastors. It was a truly unique, amazing, and rewarding experience for everyone who went.
