On November 4-8 in Almaty Hotel Kazzhol, the Joint Committee gathered more than eighty people to participate in the seminar of five Hesed Progams. The seminar featured each of Hesed activities: managing, accounting, children’s initiative, home care, and maintaining data bases.

It was a representative seminar. Professionals specializing in charity programs from Israel and the CIS including Itzchak Averbuch (Regional Director, Israel), Boris Boguslavsky (Regional Representative of the JDC in Kazakhstan, Central Asia and Transcaucasia, Israel), Ilana Levi (Israel), Shoshana Levavy (Director of JDC Charity Programs, Israel), Yulia Meylakhs (JDC Financial Department, Israel), Arie Haviv (Program Coordinator, Israel), Svetlana Byvalkevich (Supervisor of Home Care Program for the CIS, Ukraine), Nona Sultanoshvili (Auditor, Uzbekistan), JDC Representatives from Tashkent, as well as Hesed Directors from Bishkek, Yerevan, Ashgabat came to participate in the seminar. Staff members Almaty Hesed "Polina" also taught at the seminar.

Four of the five seminar programs were directed to improve the level of professional skills. A group of Hesed directors was dealing with issue arising in the work of joint programs. During the workshop, they all participated in the work of professional offices. Alexander Baron, President of Hesed Polina Kazakhstan, discussed future activities with them.

Even a simple enumeration of those who worked in each group of the seminar gives an idea of its scale. So, "The Children's Initiative Program" was attended by: President of Hesed Polina Kazakhstan Alexander Baron, Program Coordinator from Israel Arie Haviv, representatives of Almaty city administration from the Department for Child Protection, the Director of this program in Hesed" Polina" Zhanna Danilenko and Family Psychologist Natalia Pshenina.

"Home Care Program" coordinators learned to use new techniques for working with documents and computer data bases. The programs staff had joint classes with operators of the databases. Svetlana Byvalkevich, Valentina Sokolkova, and Marina Iorish shared their experiences.

The operators of Almaty databases learned not only professional peculiarities but also how to cooperate with Hesed operational programs.

Accounting - one of the most laborious offices in any enterprise. Yulia Meylakhs, Galina Boldyreva, Lubov Limonova talked with accountants and with directors of charity organizations.

In the evening on November 5 in Hotel Kazzhol, all participants met the Saturday. Wonderful Shabbat was organized and conducted by Director of Hesed Polina Inessa Chugainova.

The organizers of the seminar are grateful to Igor Berner, Kazzhol Director, for the smooth work of all hotel services.

The seminar aimed at improving professional skills carried out its stated mission.

Ludmila Starodubova