BEGIN:VCALENDAR
VERSION:2.0
PRODID:-//wp-events-plugin.com//7.2.3.1//EN
TZID:America/Detroit
X-WR-TIMEZONE:America/Detroit
BEGIN:VEVENT
UID:35024@arabamerica.com
DTSTART;TZID=America/Detroit:20250913T103000
DTEND;TZID=America/Detroit:20250913T110000
DTSTAMP:20250820T172033Z
URL:https://www.arabamerica.com/events/childrens-storytime-hilwas-gifts-by
 -safa-suleiman/
SUMMARY:Children's Storytime: HILWA'S GIFTS by Safa Suleiman
DESCRIPTION:Join us for a children's storytime with Safa Suleiman\, author 
 of Hilwa's Gifts. The author will read and sign her beautiful picture book
  and then attendees will be invited to share in olive oil and pita from ou
 r neighbors at the Middle Eastern Bakery.\n\nStorytime is designed for age
 s 2 and up\, but all are welcome. Registration is required.\n\nA heartwarm
 ing picture-book debut brings a tradition many thousands of years old—ha
 rvesting and pressing olives into oil—vividly to life\, showing how cust
 oms unite us across time and space.\n\nAli has arrived in Palestine for a 
 visit just in time for the olive harvest. His grandfather\, Seedo\, and Hi
 lwa—his favorite tree—greet him in the grove\, where Seedo explains th
 at Hilwa has many gifts to share. Other family members whack the trees’ 
 branches with sticks\, singing “Zaytoon\, ya zaytoon” while cousins cl
 ap and dance and happily pick up fallen olives. (Luckily\, a gentle whack 
 is all it takes for Hilwa’s fruits to rain down!) The next day\, at the 
 olive press\, Ali watches the drip of gold liquid into a can\, another of 
 Hilwa’s gifts. Later\, they picnic under the tree’s branches with hot 
 mint tea\, pita\, and delicious olive oil swirled on hummus. Tradition is 
 the greatest gift of all: the family gathering—generation after generati
 on—to celebrate a bountiful harvest. Dynamic illustrations and a gracefu
 l text peppered with Arabic words\, plus a glossary and author’s note\, 
 make for an intimate picture-book debut about a child discovering his heri
 tage.\n\nSafa Suleiman is a Palestinian American educator with more than t
 wenty years of experience in undergraduate and elementary school pedagogy.
  She is the author of Hilwa’s Gifts published by Candlewick Press which 
 received a starred review from Booklist\, calling it “an absolute treasu
 re\,” and Ameena’s Special Thobe slated for release in the Spring 2027
 . Safa lives with her family in Colorado on the homeland of the Ute Nation
 .
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.arabamerica.com/wp-content/uploads/2
 025/08/Screenshot-2025-08-20-at-1.17.18-PM.png
LOCATION:Women & Children First\, 5233 North Clark Street \, Chicago\, IL\,
  60640\, United States
GEO:41.97727;-87.668133
X-APPLE-STRUCTURED-LOCATION;VALUE=URI;X-ADDRESS=5233 North Clark Street \, 
 Chicago\, IL\, 60640\, United States;X-APPLE-RADIUS=100;X-TITLE=Women & Ch
 ildren First:geo:41.97727,-87.668133
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VTIMEZONE
TZID:America/Detroit
X-LIC-LOCATION:America/Detroit
BEGIN:DAYLIGHT
DTSTART:20250309T030000
TZOFFSETFROM:-0500
TZOFFSETTO:-0400
TZNAME:EDT
END:DAYLIGHT
END:VTIMEZONE
END:VCALENDAR