Dear Friends of Biblical Tamar Park,

Greetings as we begin to feel the warming temperatures of the coming spring. May the earth be blessed and may we do better to care for it.

Last week I returned from Israel, having spent three weeks at Biblical Tamar Park which included taking the annual archaeology class so that I could obtain my own certificate to assist the Israeli Antiquities Authority in tel restoration.  The tel has become an integral part of the National Park and is attracting many tourists.

With the substantial help through the years of our “Friends of Biblical Tamar Park,” we have completed Phase I of the Park Plan, and it has already been approved by one Government Agency, the Sapir Regional Council.  It has to make its way through two more Government Agencies which will take four to six months.  We are extraordinarily pleased to have come this far.

You may remember that after I retired from Jordan College in 1988, after 20 years of service, that I continued my scientific and educational work in Israel.

Like me, many people have a lifetime of activities that may have led where they had not anticipated.  I would not have anticipated that I would spend the major part of my most productive years leading an archaeological project that would become a national park in Israel. But, with my interest in education and energy, it is little wonder that I would get involved in an ancient city that dates from the time of Abraham and Moses and is central to events in the history of Israel.

My broad interest now is to finish the archaeology work, and begin Phase II which will include building a museum and preparing this ancient city for Jews, Christians, and Muslims, particularly, but also for everyone who is interested.  People already come by the busloads to see ancient tel Tamar. When the museum is built they will be able to see the priceless 26,000 artifacts that we have uncovered in the last 25 years.

It is also of great interest to me that Christians and Muslims visit Tamar and realize that the God of Abraham was also very much the One who gave meaning to these other two great monotheistic faiths.  It may be that Tamar will be a desert retreat where people from these three faiths will come and study the great central truths of Abrahamic faith and realize that the foundation is more important than their differences. Education is always the key to difficult problems.

Perhaps I am getting too much into my “vision” and while that is needed, I need to stay with the facts. Please let me update you on what is happening right now at Biblical Tamar Park.

Thanks to the “Friends of Biblical Tamar Park” who have given through the years, the Park is debt free, fully certified with the State of Israel, and operational. Hundreds of people visit each year from Israel and we take several hundred from the USA to visit Israel and to work as volunteers in the Park.

The Israel Antiquities Authority, Blossoming Rose, the Sapir Regional Council, and the Jewish National Fund have invested a combined three million dollars in the Park to the present. Blossoming Rose has raised and paid nearly one-million of that total.  Some of the financial needs seemed overwhelming in these past 25 years, but have stood to the task of meeting the need and today the Park has taken on a life of its own.

Finishing Phase I required an updated survey of the Park, engineering work for traffic flow (roads and parking), utilities, sewer, and volunteer housing.  We also had to hire a project manager to gather all for the parts of the study and then walk The Plan through the proper government agencies. These extra expenses were about $35,000 and they need to be paid before we start Phase II.  Several organizations in Israel have promised to be partners in Phase II and we know that without them, the second Phase will be beyond anything we can do.

Completing Phase I, however, is a major accomplishment that allows a new beginning, that without adequate funding, we will not pursue alone. The entire Phase I Site Plan document was written in Hebrew and is being translated into English. Copies will be made by the park planner, Ilan ben Joseph, and sent to me within a few weeks. I will have one of the copies reserved for you if you will simply request a copy.

If you could help us finish paying these final costs for Phase I, it would be greatly appreciated.  I have not taken a salary for the past two years in order to accomplish this major effort and there have been many sacrifices by people who believe that they are doing something for God when they give.  We appreciate everyone who has helped.

Sincerely,

DeWayne Coxon,

President