New, mobile outreach van will vastly expand services in remote communities 

When the Jerusalem Princess Basma Center’s aging community outreach van died last year, things looked grim to the leaders at JPBC. But thanks to a generous donor, a new, fully-equipped van will soon hit the road to serve children with disabilities across the West Bank.

JPBC’s partnerships with eight health clinics in Ramallah, Nablus, Qalqiliah, Jenin, Hebron, and Jericho depend on the Center’s mobile clinic van to transport doctors, therapists, and equipment around the West Bank. In late 2021, the Center’s aging van failed to pass inspection and the outreach program and the hundreds of children it serves were at serious risk.

During outreach visits, children with disabilities are diagnosed and referred to the Center in Jerusalem for comprehensive and specialized rehabilitation programs which the local clinics are not equipped to provide. In 2021, from January through November, 924 children with disabilities were assessed through the outreach program, but in December, with the loss of the clinic van, those referrals slowed to a trickle.

In February, we shared the news with our partners in Jerusalem that a generous $150,000 gift from Donald Campbell of Virginia would fund the purchase, modification, and equipping of a Volkswagen Transporter van.

JPBC’s director Violette Mubarak wrote to us, “We are grateful for our American Friends’ commitment to JPBC and all of your efforts to sustain our work. We move onward into a new day, and in the light of this news, a more generous and kind world.”

Once back on the road with a new van and equipment, the outreach team will provide diagnoses for close to 100 children per month. These evaluations conducted in local communities are the first step in providing therapy and rehabilitation to many Palestinian children with disabilities.