A small but important aid to the elderly of Bethlehem
One of ATS pro Terra Sancta’s priorities in 2012 is to help the most vulnerable elements of the population in Bethlehem. Thanks to the funds collected during Advent 2011, ATS pro Terra Sancta can continue to support the activities of the Franciscan Social Service Office, the project of the Custody of the Holy Land in Bethlehem for helping the poor of the city.
The attention of the local staff will continue to be focused on the weakest elements of the population, especially children and the elderly, but also widows and families in difficulty.
As one example, as a result of ATS pro Terra Sancta’s contribution in February, it will now be possible to renew medical insurance for approximately thirty indigent elderly people. Government medical insurance, which covers only a small part of prescriptions and primary medical care, is currently the only option available for the elderly who live in the Palestinian Territories.
The medical situation, in Bethlehem and in the rest of the Palestinian Territories, thus remains very precarious. The FSSO and the Franciscan friars from the Bethlehem parish are constantly seeking to find solutions and responses to the frequent medical emergencies with which they are confronted.