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Rafat Shomali

Co-Founder/CEO

“The more I traveled the more I realized that fear makes strangers of people who should be friends.”

Steven Furtick
A Desire to see Changed Lives!

My Story

I was born in the Arabian Gulf in Qatar. When I was a small child we moved to Nigeria and lived there for 10 years and, after, moved back to my family’s homeland of Beit Sahour, the city where the angels proclaimed the birth of Christ to the shepherds. After high school, I was interested in journalism and one to Spain to attend a university where I studied and graduated from the University of Zaragoza. After college, I moved back to Beit Sahour because my family was here. Coming back to this place changed my life. I wanted people to understand what it was like growing up here as a Christian and to show them how we still live the culture of Jesus today. I became passionate about sharing my home with others, which is how and why I got involved with travel. All my immediate family immigrated to Canada. I am the only one left. I am compelled to stay and continue to be a Christian presence in the land of Jesus.

Why KOINONIA?

Being a tour guide for over 10 years has helped shape the image of the type of travel company I want to be. At Koinonia Travel, our idea of travel is different from any other travel agency. What we do is follow Jesus and His teachings as if he were here today. We are not about having a business simply to make money. We are about sharing what we have with the community. We are about sharing our lives with you, the traveler.
 
As a guide, I have had the privilege to share my land and stories with many VIPs, especially dignitaries and leaders from other countries. But I’ve come to see each person I guide as a VIP because each person takes these stories and experiences back to their home and shares them with friends and family, telling them about the Christians who still live and work here in the land of Jesus.
LIFE HIGHLIGHTS
  • Licensed Travel Expert and Tour Guide with the Ministry of Tourism
  • Graduated from Bethlehem Bible College as a Tour Guide
  • Graduated from University of Zaragoza with degrees in Spanish Langauge and Literature
  • Planning to being pursue a Masters Degree in Theology
A Shepherd at Heart

A story from the road

Visiting the Shepherd’s Field, which is close to my house changed my own life. Standing in that place and reading and learning about the teachings of Jesus shaped my life and how I live today. My father told me the stories of true shepherds from this land. When a sheep continues to wander from the flock, the shepherd has to twist his leg—he doesn’t break it, just twists it enough that the sheep is lame for a couple of weeks. During that time, the shepherd carries that sheep around his neck, feeding it from his hand and speaking to it. The sheep learns the shepherd’s smell and voice and becomes completely dependent on him because of that injury.
 
Our pastures aren’t always green; we have to live through many challenges in life. Sometimes bad things happen, but the Lord can use those experiences to redirect us, like the shepherd does his sheep. We have to trust that the Lord is our Shepherd. 

Biography

Rafat has been involved in travel for 15 years, 12 of those years as a guide. He has had the privilege to guide many amazing people, young and old, from actors and diplomats to families and college groups. 

Contact Info

Phone : +972 2-276-9000
Email : Rafat@KoinoniaTravel.org

Margie Lynn

Operations Manager

Biography

A wonderful serenity has taken possession of my entire soul, like these sweet mornings of spring which I enjoy with my whole heart. I am alone, and feel the charm of existence in this spot, which was created for the bliss of souls like mine. I am so happy, my dear friend, so absorbed in the exquisite sense of mere tranquil existence, that I neglect my talents. I should be incapable of drawing a single stroke at the present moment. I throw myself down among the tall grass by the trickling stream; and, as I lie close to the earth. Thousand unknown plants are noticed by me. When I hear the buzz of the little world among the stalks, and grow familiar with the countless. Far far away, behind the word mountains, far from the countries Vokalia and Consonantia, there live the blind texts. Separated they live in Bookmarksgrove.

Chronology

2013-Present
CTO, Senior Software Engineer of Apple Co.
2008-2013
Senior Software Development, Project Manager, Cisco Network
2000-2008
Team Leader, Software Design and Development, Asus
1997-2000
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Computer Engineering

Skills

Photography90%
Animation70%
Coding Skill100%
WordPress 85%

Contact Info

Phone : (1)-1234-4444
Email : Contact@GoodLayers.com