SPRINGFIELD — As Springfield physician Norbert Goldfield looked back on a year of helping Palestinians and Israelis in the Middle East, he told supporters, “It is difficult to find shards of hope these days.”

Goldfield is expressing his thoughts in the 2024 annual report of Healing Across the Divides, a nonprofit organization he founded in Northampton 20 years ago.

The group raises money that goes to health and social service organizations in Israel (including the West Bank) and war-torn Gaza. He has a staff of five in the region, and they offer strategic advice and guidance to their local partners.

Goldfield and his organization have worked with dozens of groups helping thousands of people, like Tamara Awartani, who founded and heads Palestine Sports for Life.

The organization trains

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