To Elsie Kattan and Rana Al-Arja, Captain Bill Bellamy of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of England is “grandpa Bellamy.” Standing in the Plaza of Bethlehem University in the middle of the daily rush on campus, Elsie and Rana said “yes, he is like a grandpa to us,” and Captain Bellamy smiled and said: “I used to have seventeen grandchildren and now I have nineteen.”

But what is the story exactly? Captain Bellamy admires greatly the opportunities for young people in Palestine offered by Bethlehem University. He wished to help graduates to experience life in the U.K. today by inviting them to his home. Two graduating seniors, Elsie and Rana, were selected and were delighted to have such an opportunity. Traveling to a distant country was especially exciting, taking into consideration the daily reality of military occupation and their inability to leave Bethlehem even to visit nearby Jerusalem.

The two girls made it to the U.K despite all the travel restrictions. Grandpa Bellamy took them to historical, cultural, and tourist sites including some in London. They all spent two days in Wales as well.

Last week when Captain Bellamy was visiting Bethlehem University, Elsie and Rana were waiting for him in the Plaza, as he emerged from the Brothers' House where he was staying. Elsie and Rana smiled, and so as grandpa Bellamy, when they saw each other in the middle of the crowd. Elsie said: “ now we are going to show grandpa all the nice places in Bethlehem. We will show him the Church of Nativity, we will take him to Shepherds' Field in Beit Sahour, and we will have lunch together.”