New LWF Representative in Jerusalem
Sieglinde Weinbrenner, who has worked for 25 years in development and human rights and who has formal training as a registered nurse, officially began her position as Representative for the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) Jerusalem Program on Friday 2 August 2019. Weinbrenner replaces Interim Representative Lennart Hernander, who has returned to Sweden following his tenure in Jerusalem.
“Sieglinde brings with her a lifelong interest and engagement with Israel / Palestine and a profound commitment to support the realization of human rights for all,” said Caroline Tveoy, Regional Program Coordinator for LWF. “Based on her original training as a nurse, and her long-standing experience in ecumenical cooperation and development work, I expect Sieglinde to be able to continue and reinforce the excellent work of the LWF Jerusalem program, while also bringing in new ideas, contacts and approaches, shaping the work of the program for the strategy period 2019 - 2024.”
Weinbrenner has ties to LWF and Augusta Victoria Hospital (AVH) that date back to 1999 when she was the Middle East desk officer for the Protestant Development Service, which later merged with Bread for the World. In that position, she worked directly with the LWF Representative and AVH administration. She holds a master’s degree in anthropology and comes to Jerusalem from Germany, where she was the head of unit for World Wide projects, East Asia and Mekong at Bread for the World.
“Jerusalem has held a special place in my heart ever since I spent a year volunteering here after secondary school,” Weinbrenner said. “I am amazed and humbled by the incredible life-saving and life-giving work being done here. Now I am looking forward to joining the committed and dedicated team at the Lutheran World Federation World Service in Jerusalem and in Geneva. To be able to come back in this capacity, to be able to offer my experiences in support of this work, is a dream come true.”
The LWF Jerusalem Program is a multi-faceted program of support and capacity building to the Palestinian people that includes the Augusta Victoria Hospital, Village Outreach Program and the Vocational Training Program. Through these programs, LWF provides radio therapy and pediatric hemodialysis to all 5 million Palestinians, performs mammograms for 30% of the population and trains more than 800 vocational students each year.
