Gush Etzion Regional Council  
 

Mayor Shaul Goldstein

About the Gush Etzion Council

As early as 1920, Gush Etzion has served as a goal for Jewish pioneers.

There have been four attempts in our history to settle the Gush Etzion area - 1927, 1935-1936, 1943-1948 and, finally, after 19 years of longing and separation, in 1967 the sons of Gush Etzion returned home.

Gush Etzion has become an eternal memorial to the heroic members who fell in battle, defending the gush on the very Eve of the Establishment of the State of Israel.

David Ben Gurion, in his statements (1948) on the battle of Gush Etzion and of the heroic acts of the brave soldiers: "...If there is a Jewish Jerusalem today..., the Jewish people owe their gratitude first and foremost to the defenders of Gush Etzion..."

We, the members and residents of Gush Etzion, are obligated to continue the development of Gush Etzion with the assistance of our government.

No more an historical Gush Etzion with its beginning four communities but a large region called Gush Etzion, which spreads out and connects with Hebron in the south and becomes a part of greater Jerusalem.

The Regional Council of Gush Etzion gives service to its over 20 communities in the fields of education, culture, security, health, religion, welfare and community, development and building, environmental development, agriculture and technological research and the development of various spheres of employment.

The Regional Council is also responsible for the upkeep and development of historical sites and implementing the memorial of the battle of Gush Etzion.

Map of Gush Etzion

 
RELIGIOUS AFFAIRS

Composed of representatives from all Gush Etzion communities, the Council for Religious Affairs oversees all religious services and facilities - including 24 synagogues and 21 mikvahs - for residents of the region. The regional rabbinic court also falls under the jurisdiction of the Religious Council.

Among the Council`s ongoing activities are:

• Appointing rabbis for all communities and organizing a forum where these spiritual leader meet to discuss local religious issues and questions
  
• Registering and performing all marriages in Gush Etzion
  
• Certifying the kashruth of stores, restaurants, catering facilities and factories
  
• Checking and repairing Torah scrolls and maintaining a Torah library in each synagogue
  
• Training volunteer and paid chevra kadisha workers; supplying the needs of houses of mourning and maintaining the local cemetery
  
• Checking and repairing the eruv

New Mikve in Alon Shvut 
 

 
Before each Jewish holiday, the Council sees to the religious needs of the community, supplying food and holiday staples for needy families, organizing public seders on Pesach and ensuring the availability of s’chach and the four species for Sukkoth.

The Council also organizes lectures on religious topics for the general public and has carried out special projects including the creation of a multi-media Torah center for youth.

Projects requiring funding

1.	Religious articles for new olim and needy families:
	Annual budget for mezuzot, tefillin, talitot	$10,000
2.	Building and maintaining mikvahs:
	Constructing new mikvah (65 meters with 2 baths)	$175,000
	Maintaining existing mikvah (per mikvah per year)	$7,500
3.	Course for training rabbis` wives for community work
	1 course of 25 women	$25,000

 
ENGINEERING AND INFRASTRUCTURE

One step ahead of Gush Etzion`s steady growth and development, the region`s Department of Infrastructure and Engineering literally lays the groundwork for the future. Responsible for improving and developing infrastructure as well as planning and building all public structures, the Department is implementing an overall plan for regional expansion based on a projected population of 90,000 by the year 2020. In addition to 1750 new residential units throughout the jurisdiction of the Gush Etzion Council, the expansion calls for:

• A 500 dunam industrial park (two buildings are already complete and inhabited)
  
• A 120-dunam business, commercial and tourism center at the Gush Etzion junction
  
• Renovation and preservation of Kibbutz Massuot Yitzhak, with the addition of educational and recreational facilities
  
• New sewage recycling and purification plants for irrigation purposes in Tekoa, Nokdim and Kedar
  
• New schools in the regional center, Metzad and Bat Ayin, and new kindergartens in Maale Amos and Neve Daniel
  
• Preserving historical structures throughout the region
  
• Roads and Infrastructure

Recent improvements in the region`s infrastructure include newly-repaired, safer access and internal roads, with the addition of better lighting, road signs, speed bumps, guard rails, traffic circles and special bus stops for schoolchildren.
 

 

1.	Completion of Regional elementary school:
	18 classes, grades 1-8	$1 million
2.	Elementary school, Bat Ayin and Metzad	$750,000
3.	Gush Etzion Junction	$750,000
4.	Three community buildings, $750,000 each	$2.25 million
5.	Infrastructure and gardening:
	6 new communities, $62,500 each	$375,000
6.	Annual maintenance and gardening:
	4 existing communities, $2,500 each	$10,000

 
COMMUNITY SERVICES

Every one of Gush Etzion`s communities has a uniquely characteristic population of its own; a different combination of old-timers and new immigrants, religious and non-religious, affluent and needy, young and old. Therefore, welfare services and cultural activities alike must be innovative and far-reaching in order to serve all residents of the region.

Welfare
The geographic distance of one community from another, coupled with poor public transportation between the communities can make it difficult for residents to seek and receive the social services they require. Thus, the Gush Etzion Council has placed representatives of its welfare department in the communities; making them more accessible for those in need. Unlike "big city" welfare departments that make extensive referrals, Gush Etzion`s department employs a larger therapeutic staff to serve residents locally.

Special programs run by the welfare department include volunteering projects for high school students, services for seniors, parenting groups, psychodrama groups for children and adults, and seminars for Gush Etzion residents on topics such as family violence, coping with teenagers, raising special-needs children and surviving as a single parent.

Community Center (Matnas)
There is just one matnas in the entire region. Yet, by operating satellite centers and activities in six Gush Etzion communities, the center can offer cultural and sports activities, music lessons, art courses, day camps, outings and senior citizens` programs to all residents of the area.

The main matnas houses a pool with health spa and fitness room, a music conservatory, a sports center and a multi-purpose auditorium for concerts and performances as well as special events and school activities.

The community center generates two-thirds of its own income. Its operating budget has grown by 40% over the past three years to reach NIS 5 million.

Choir

 
Community Center
 

1.	Scholarships for needy children in after-school programs and day camps:
	Per child per year	$200.00
2.	After-school program for children - equipment, furniture, transportation and staff
	Per program per school year	$15,000
3.	Internet center for Gush Etzion communities for assisting youth with studies:
	Computers and furnishings	$30,000

 

Welfare Services
 

1.	Financial aid for families in crisis - single parent families,
	large families, immigrants, disabled:
	Annual budget	$50,000
2.	Youth Leadership Education programs
	Equipment, supervision and transportation for 14 participants/year	$200,000
3.	Training course in emergency crisis intervention for community leadership:
	28 participants	$20,000