{"id":48,"date":"2016-08-09T20:44:32","date_gmt":"2016-08-09T20:44:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/sharpswar\/?page_id=48"},"modified":"2026-04-14T16:18:43","modified_gmt":"2026-04-14T16:18:43","slug":"israel","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/sharpswar\/israel\/","title":{"rendered":"Israel"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

In 1943, Martha Sharp helped found Children to Palestine<\/strong>, an organization dedicated to resettling Jewish refugee children from Europe and North Africa in Mandatory Palestine. Children to Palestine regularly partnered with Youth Aliyah, a program for rescuing Jewish children from Nazi occupied zones, and Hadassah, a women\u2019s Zionist aid organization. After the war, Children to Palestine turned its efforts to building and enriching communities, heavily supporting the youth village of Ben Shemen, established by Dr. Siegfried Lehmann in 1927.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Israel<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Israel<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Israel<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Israel<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Israel<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During the first Arab-Israeli War in 1948, Ben Shemen was evacuated and the youth village was used as a headquarters for the Israeli army. In the wake of the fighting, Children to Palestine began fundraising to build the community anew in neighboring Kfar Vitkin. They founded a new school with help from Albert and Elsa Einstein. Martha first visited Ben Shemen in 1947, and maintained a long relationship with Dr. Lehmann and other humanitarians in Israel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Israel<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Israel<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"bdr697210_1md\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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\"Israel<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

Exhibited items :<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cChildren to Palestine, Inc.\u201d<\/strong>
\nInformational pamphlet, circa 1950<\/span>
\nMartha and Waitstill Sharp Collection<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Martha Sharp and Dr. Siegfried Lehmann with a dedication sign in Ben Shemen (Kfar Vitkin)<\/strong>
\nPhotograph, 1949<\/span>
\nMartha and Waitstill Sharp Collection<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Entrance to Ben Shemen (Kfar Vitkin)<\/strong>
\nPhotograph, 1949<\/span>
\nMartha and Waitstill Sharp Collection<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dr. Siegfried Lehmann holding plan of the future Ben Shemen at Kfar Vitkin<\/strong>
\nPhotograph, 21 August, 1948<\/span>
\nMartha and Waitstill Sharp Collection<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Proposed Einstein School building site at \u201cThe Samuel A. Eliot Village,\u201d Ben Shemen (Kfar Vitkin)<\/strong>
\nMap produced by Children to Palestine, circa 1949<\/span>
\nMartha and Waitstill Sharp Collection<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Martha Sharp, Albert Einstein, and Children to Palestine donor examining a donated telescope<\/strong>
\nPhotograph by Alan W. Richards, Princeton, N.J., 1954<\/span>
\nMartha and Waitstill Sharp Collection<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Excerpt from \u201cOn The First Anniversary of Albert Einstein\u201d<\/strong>
\nScrapbook presented to Martha Sharp on the Einstein School\u2019s first anniversary, 6 April, 1956<\/span>
\nMartha and Waitstill Sharp Collection<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dr. Siegfried Lehmann to Rev. Ralph H. Read, Executive Director of Children to Palestine<\/strong>
\nTyped letter, 28 December, 1953
\nMartha and Waitstill Sharp Collection<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dr. Siegfried Lehmann to Martha Sharp<\/strong>
\nGreeting card with photograph of Ben Shemen children, circa 1955<\/span>
\nMartha and Waitstill Sharp Collection<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our World Cut-Out of the Month : Israel<\/i><\/strong>
\nWilliam Elliott (author) and Hugh Laidman (illustrator)<\/span>
\nBuffalo, NY : Foster & Stewart Publishing Corp., 1950<\/span>
\nMartha and Waitstill Sharp Collection<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In 1943, Martha Sharp helped found Children to Palestine, an organization dedicated to resettling Jewish refugee children from Europe and North Africa in Mandatory Palestine. Children to Palestine regularly partnered with Youth Aliyah, a program for rescuing Jewish children from Nazi occupied zones, and Hadassah, a women\u2019s Zionist aid organization. After the war, Children to … Israel<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":63,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"template-full-width.php","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-48","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/sharpswar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/48","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/sharpswar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/sharpswar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/sharpswar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/63"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/sharpswar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=48"}],"version-history":[{"count":30,"href":"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/sharpswar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/48\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":713,"href":"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/sharpswar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/48\/revisions\/713"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/library.brown.edu\/create\/sharpswar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=48"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}