Saturday, June 5, 2010 at the First Congregational Church Social Hall, 900 High Street, Santa Cruz
Featuring Israeli Peace Activist & International Peace Prize Winner, NOMIKA ZION speaking on “Raising Another Voice.”
5:30 p.m. Hors D’oeuvres & Silent Auction
6:00 p.m. Dinner – vegetarian Middle Eastern Cuisine
7:00 p.m. Program- Brief concert with First Congregational Gospel Choir and New Beginning Community Gospel Choir, followed by featured speaker Nomika Zion
Reservation Information:
General reservations: $35-100 per person sliding scale for the Dinner and Program.
PROGRAM ONLY at 7p.m.: $7-25 sliding scale
$250 – $1000 “Sponsor” reserves a table for 8.
$100 – $235 “Host” reserved seating for 2 people
$50 “Supporter” reserved seating for one person;
**Scholarship Donation: If you cannot attend, consider giving a scholarship for young people or families.
Please make Reservations : 831-423-1626.
ABOUT OUR SPEAKER: Naomi (Nomika) Zion, is a granddaughter of Yaakov Hazan, co-founder of the first kibbutz in Israel. In 1987 Nomika founded the urban kibbutz Migvan in Sderot, Israel, situated in a quiet agricultural area a mile and a half from the border. Since the beginning of the Second Intifada in 2000 Sderot became the target of relentless bombardment by Qassam rockets launched by Palestinian militant groups in Gaza. The intensification of rocket-fire in 2005 has made Sderot a household name in the West.
In August, 2009, Nomika published the Sderot War Diary “Not in my name and not for me you went to war.” The Diary takes Israel to task for the invasions of Gaza, and was published in 22 different languages. Because of this powerful letter, Nomika received several international peace prizes including the 2009 Niarchos Prize for Survivorship.
Nomika is active with the “Other Voices” group in Israel, a peace collective comprised of residents of both Gaza and neighbouring Israeli towns like Sderot. Other Voices seeks to present an alternative to the majority of pro-war opinions that currently dominate the media in Israel and the USA. Zion is also director of the Center for Social Justice in memory of Yaakov Hazan at the Van Leer Institute in Jerusalem.
Reservations are required for dinner: 831-423-1626 .