Blessings on Don Domenico, 89 years old

On January 2, 2011, our dear friend, Don Domenico Dezzuto, the elderly Salesian from Beit Jemal, celebrated his 89th birthday. Don Domenico was born in Turin, Italy in 1922. He arrived in the country in 1937 in order to study theology in the seminary for priests in Bethlehem. There he spent the years of the Second World War. He was a prisoner of war in a British internment camp until 1945, where he continued his theology studies. In 1948, he was ordained a priest. He served in Cremisan, in Bethlehem, in Beit Jemal, in Cairo and for a short time in Italy, after which he returned to Beit Jemal where he continues to live today.

Many friends came to greet him on his birthday and sang to him in Italian, in Arabic, in English. I did not dare to sing in Hebrew, both because I was part of a tiny minority and because I have no talent for singing. Typical for Don Domenico, there were people of all ages gathered around him and each one felt free and comfortable in his presence. Just like Don Bosco (founder of the Salesians, he knows how to speak simply with each one, young and old alike. Each one feels his warmth and empathy, his curiosity and his honesty.

Don Domenico, dear friend, may you be blessed with 120 years, and double that in good health if God wishes. We will pray for you.