Our Stories: "In this immensely complex and difficult situation, if there is ever to be hope for the future, we need to begin with the children." Dalia Peretz, former principal. Read her story.
Israel National Office, Jerusalem
Shalom (Shuli) Dichter, executive director
A long-time civil-society activist in Israel, Shuli joined Hand in Hand in January 2011. From 1998 to 2008, Shuli was the co-executive director of Sikkuy, The Association for the Advancement of Civic Equality, a Jewish-Arab advocacy organization. There he worked to advance equality via government-policy change, municipal cooperation and mobilization of public opinion. His op-ed articles and essays on equality and Arab-Jewish relations are frequently published in Israel and abroad. In 2001, he was invited to give expert testimony before the Or State Commission of Inquiry examining the status of Israel’s Arab citizens following the killing of 13 Arab demonstrators in October 2000. As of 2009, Shuli has been writing and consulting, for the officer of the Israeli prime minister and others, in his fields of expertise. He lives in Kibbutz Ma'anit near the Kfar Kara school and is married to Avital, an art teacher. They have three children.
Inas Deeb, director of educational programs
Inas supervises pedagogy, program development, curriculum development and teacher training at Hand in Hand's four schools. She holds an undergraduate degree from Haifa University and advanced education degrees from Hebrew University in Jerusalem and St. Joseph University in Pennsylvania. She is currently finishing her Ph.D. research in the language and psychology of development at Bar-Ilan University in Tel Aviv. Most recently, she worked as a teacher, counselor and language advisor at the Pedagogical Center of East Jerusalem, and has served as an assistant professor and chief research coordinator at Bar-Ilan's Multidisciplinary Brain Research Center. Inas has twins, a boy and a girl, who are ninth graders at Hand in Hand's high school.
Haytam Masad, financial manager
A CPA, Haytam joined the Hand in Hand team in 2008. He holds a B.A. in business administration from The College of Management in Rishon L'Tzion and a Certificate of Accounting Advisory to Local Councils from the Association of Israeli Accountants. He has held various positions in both the public and private sector and comes to Hand in Hand with a wealth of experience. Haytam is responsible for overseeing budgets and all other financial matters for operations in Israel.
Ira Kerem, director of donor relations
Ira moved to Israel from Maryland in 1980 and joined Hand in Hand in 2005. With more than 30 years experience in nonprofit development, he coordinates donor visits, writes newsletters, grant proposals and reports to funders, and oversees special projects such as summer camps and interns. Ira also serves as the Israel representative for the Seattle, Phoenix, Tucson, and Houston Jewish Federations. He lives in Jerusalem and has four adult children. In the last few years, he has become addicted to Israeli dancing.
Mahmoud Habashi, assistant financial manager
Mahmoud earned his CPA degree from El Zeituna University in Jordan. He is Hand in Hand's bookkeeper and handles all of the day-to-day tasks associated with this position. Mahmoud hails from the north of Israel, but currently lives in Jerusalem with his new bride.
Debbie Altman, office manager
Originally from Argentina, and fluent in Spanish, Hebrew and English, Debbie holds two B.A.s, one in education and one in Jewish studies. She began work at Hand in Hand in May 2010. Previously she worked for 15 years at the Embassy of El Salvador. She lives in Jerusalem, and is married with two children.
Helen Mendelson, development associate
Helen moved to Israel from Manchester, England, in 1997. After working in the sales department of the Sheraton Jerusalem Plaza, she joined Hand in Hand in 2006 as assistant to the director of development. Helen manages various projects, including fundraising trips abroad, exchanges between schools, and day-to-day administrative duties related to fundraising. Helen lives just outside Jerusalem in Tzur Hadassah, and has two young children.
