What did life before COVID-19 sound like?

Tom Fellner • April 25, 2020

At House of Hope, it sounded like joy. Belly laughs, wild shrieks of glee, and little voices humming in play.

This photo of our kindergartners was taken a few months before COVID-19 silenced our students’ joy and forced us all into quarantine.

Our hearts go out to everyone in the world suffering from the pandemic, wherever you are. We care about you and love you.

Here in the West Bank, we cannot work and there are no stimulus funds or unemployment benefits for our community. Our medical system is already underfunded, and the West Bank has only 256 ventilators for 2.5 million people. Panic and fear hang over the world like storm clouds, threatening to drown us all.

But reality is not just material conditions. At House of Hope, our children remind us what is real.

On the last day of school before quarantine, a young student named Hazem walked up to one of our teachers.

A boy and a girl are playing with wooden blocks on the floor.

“Teacher,” he said “Don’t be sad. I will hug you. And every day I will practice games for us to play when I return.”


Hazem reminds us of what is most important right now: our humanity. We may all be vulnerable to the virus, but we are protected by our compassion. This is our inheritance and our strength.


We in the West Bank will not succumb to fear. And neither should you.


We are all together in this, our families and yours. We are one.


With you always,

Milad Vosgueritchian
Co-founder and Chairman, House of Hope

Manar Vosgueritchian

Founder & School teacher, House of Hope

A group of children are sitting around a man holding a piece of paper.
December 17, 2024
Nonviolence Is The Path of the Soul
A young boy wearing a graduation cap and gown is standing in front of a bush of pink flowers.
November 16, 2024
What is Peace and Justice Education, and Why is it Crucial in Palestine?
Two young girls hugging each other in a park
By thea November 16, 2024
At House of Hope, we provide Palestinian students with a holistic education created by and for Palestinians that combines Peace and Justice Education with Trauma-Informed practices.
A boy and a girl are playing with wooden blocks on the floor.
By thea September 19, 2024
The launch of the House of Hope Peace and Justice Education Fund marks an exciting and transformative moment for our community. This initiative is built upon the core principles of peace and justice, which are not merely aspirational ideals. We live them daily, often under the most difficult circumstances in the West Bank.
A group of children posing for a picture with Manar Wahhab, House of Hope’s Co-Founder
By thea September 1, 2024
50% of parents said House of Hope's kindergarten profoundly reduced their child's toxic stress and trauma symptoms in under 1 year.
A girl is standing on a beach looking at the ocean.
By thea June 7, 2024
At House of Hope, every Palestinian child has a different story of growing up under Occupation. But one thing is always present in each of their stories— the resilient hope for peace, joy, and prosperity for their families, their community, and the world. House of Hope was thrilled to partner with Color Up Peace , a Ukrainian peacebuilding startup, to capture our teachers' hope for peace in new and interactive ways- like coloring books of their visions for peace. House of Hope teachers selected photos that represented their vision of peace. Then, Lisa Glybchenko, founder of Color Up Peace, rendered these photo-based visions of peace as coloring pages for you to color ! Below, you are invited to read what inspired each teacher to select their photo, as well as download the corresponding coloring page . “Playing the Darbukah with Friends,” Selected by House of Hope Teacher's Aide Abed "I feel freedom and inner peace when my fingers play darbukah. I feel my spirit so happy when I hear music. It is the way to seek peace when the universe dances together and sings for peace day and night." - Abed Download Abed's coloring page vision for peace and justice here .
A black and white photo of a man with a beard wearing a plaid shirt.
By thea April 27, 2024
Palestinians need freedom and not tanks and an army against them. Palestinians demand dignity and human rights. They need a state of their own, not an occupation party ruling and organizing their life. We need the world to see us as humans.
Stop This War. Now.
By thea October 13, 2023
This is the cruelest time for human beings in Palestine and Israel. The pain is profound. Children are, yet again, paying the highest price. But we must not sit idly by as the violence traumatizes yet another generation.
A woman wearing a pink hijab and a green shirt is standing in front of a tree.
By thea February 13, 2023
At the graduation ceremony for her first kindergarten class, Zain, a 25-year-old Waldorf teacher at House of Hope, watched the students walk up to the front of the room to receive their diplomas. The students beamed with pride, and Zain reminisced on the children's growth since the start of the school year. She fondly remembered when she first met the students and began learning about each one of them. Two young girls stood out as they spent most of their time withdrawn, isolated from the rest of the other children, and unable to express their feelings.
By thea October 8, 2022
Trauma-informed education considers how trauma and toxic stress impact children’s ability to learn and develop in a healthy way.
More Posts