Givat Haviva mourns the passing of Yaela Granot, former Executive Director

By Abu Vilan and Haggai Halevi

January 18, 2012

Yaela Granot was a member of Kibbutz Shuval in the Negev and was the Executive Director of Givat Haviva for five years from 1989-1994. Yaela passed away last week at the age of 75, following a long illness.

Yaela brought Givat Haviva to new heights with her unending energy and the numerous initiatives she pioneered in the field of Jewish-Arab relations, which established Givat Haviva as a key address for coexistence activities in the context of the peace process which began during these years. She orchestrated many important encounters between Jews and Arabs within Israel as well as between Israelis and Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank.

Upon leaving her position at Givat Haviva, Yaela and her husband, Elazar Granot - Member of Knesset and former leader of Mapam - travelled to South Africa where Elazar served as the first Israeli Ambassador in the post-apartheid state. Yaela was notably active in furthering black-white relations in South Africa during this time.

Yaela continued to assist Givat Haviva over the years and kept in touch with the numerous contacts forged around the world, many of whom became close friends and supporters of Givat Haviva in Europe (Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Holland and France) and in the USA.

Donations in the memory of Yaela Granot will be devoted to supporting Givat Haviva’s Face to Face dialogue program for Israeli Arab and Jewish youth, which began during Yaela’s tenure and continues to be Givat Haviva’s largest encounter program. This year for the first time, Face to Face will be supported by the Ministry of Education through matching funds, which will allow for a significant expansion of this crucial program.

In the U.S., donations can be sent to:
Givat Haviva Educational Foundation
114 West 26th Street Suite 1001
New York, NY 10001

With thanks and appreciation.

Sincerely,
Avshalom (Abu) Vilan
Chairman of the Board,
Havatzelet

Haggai Halevi
Executive Director,
Givat Haviva