A Different Kind of “Back to School” Experience

September 5, 2006 - 11:05 AM by Allison

The first day of school in the Haifa suburb of Kiryat Yam, at a school that was directly hit by Katyusha rockets. The title of the article: “Shrapnel in the Schoolyard” -

t 9 A.M., the festive opening ceremony of the school year began. Mayor Shmuel Siso and the Ministry of Education northern district supervisor, Nira Rosenheimer, were there. Due to the damage to the wall of the gym, the official ceremony was relocated from the large playground to the small yard, but afterward, in the large yard, the teachers handed out balloons and the children were asked to close their eyes and make a wish before releasing them.

At 10:30 they returned to the classrooms. Two girls proudly displayed the shrapnel they collected in the yard; others held fragments of the Katyusha that struck the school. Homeroom teacher Baron asked who spent time in a shelter during the war. All the children raised their hands, their stories mixed and they enthusiastically interrupted each other.

“There was a siren and mom and dad weren’t home. Just my sister and I were home. The rocket fell next to our house and we were really scared. After that our parents came and we left the room and saw that all the blinds in dad’s office had flown off,” related Moran.

“Our shelter was locked and by the time we broke the lock, we were already hearing the booms,” said Daniel.

Roman related, “On the first day there was a siren and I was very nervous. I didn’t even know what it was. I ran to the shelter with my little brother, because mom and dad weren’t home. Afterward I went up and turned on the television and understood Katyushas had hit Haifa and people were killed.”

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