GABRIEL JOHN BATARSEH (1932-2022), R.I.P.

The sad news was released on 9 February of the death of Gabe Batarseh, a mainstay of St. Catherine's Episcopal Church, in Florence SC. Our thoughts and prayers go out to his widow, Lillian, and the family. The good people of St. Catherine's, and the world beyond, will miss his lively presence. I did not know him very well, but I did know him, and every time I visited my daughter, Elizabeth, in Florence, I made my way to talk with him at St. C's. He was full of fascinating information and views of life in the Middle East, and especially Israel where he still had a large extended and important family. He was born in Jaffa which was then (1932) in the British Mandate of Palestine. He had seen a great deal of history and he was eager to share it with me and many others. I am grateful that he shared his thoughts with me. 

Find an informative obituary here .