A short column for a sweet new year, good mitzvahs, community spirit and volunteerism, as well as health virtues and a Greek-scented balm.
vineyards
Mike Mihalis Panayiotis is a businessman and a resident of the village of Vaza in Cyprus. For many years he lived outside the village and since he returned to his roots, the house, the land and the many vineyards of his family, he invests his energy in the "Grapes for Life" project.
Immunity from nature
After he lost his son to cancer (as part of the search for the appropriate treatment, Mike and his son also went to Israel and Mexico), the news reached him that the black grapes, a local variety that grows on this island, have nutritional and healing components.
A specialist doctor from Mexico who treated his son was the one who drew his attention to the healing abilities of the juice extracted from the black grapes (the emboli variety) with their crushed seeds that grow in the vase. The black grape seeds, the doctor told him, are known for their values that strengthen the body's immune system and can also help against cancer cells.
Healing grapes
Equipped with information and a desire to help other cancer patients, he is a friend of local volunteers and together they held the first event five years ago, of picking the grapes and grinding the fruit with the grains into a concentrated extract. They send the bottles with the high-quality extract to cancer patients in Cyprus and around the world, and do not ask for anything in return except the shipping fee.
Community work
In the months of September-October, the volunteers of the "JUICE FOR LIFE" program gather in the small village, where they receive crates of grapes harvested in the season. Working together for about two weeks, they wash the grapes and put them in blenders with the skin. After an initial and second grinding, they filter the juice obtained from the waste and transfer it to liter bottles. The juice is kept in refrigerators without preservatives for a year.
Planting fruit trees in the urban area
A visitor to the islands of Cyprus and Greece, immediately notices the fruit trees that grow in the public space, along the road or side road. The planting of fruit trees within the cities serves the need for shade and lowering the temperature, while at the same time providing a cumulative response to the nutritional resilience of its residents.
The sustainability division of the Tel Aviv municipality, for example, has been implementing the idea of community resilience for several years by distributing fruit trees to residents to plant in their yards and in the public space.
We wonder - when will Haifa have an urban sustainability agenda that promotes such projects?