The Ramallah Foundation was established in 1943 by a Ramallah individuals residing in the city of New York to provide health, education, and social services to the people of Ramallah, Palestine and the surrounding communities. The Foundation was incorporated in the State of New York in 1944 and received Tax Exempt Status. The Foundation raised funds through membership dues, donations from Ramallah individuals around the U.S., and through wise investments, and soon after, purchased a large parcel of land in Ramallah as the site of a future hospital.
In 1964, the hospital was built in Ramallah. This was a dream of the late Farid Shatara and Eissa Bateh. This dream was vigorously pursued by the late Azeez Shaheen, who was instrumental in collecting donations and supervised the building of the hospital.
In 1996, serious clashes between the Israeli occupation forces and the Palestinians at the outskirts of Ramallah caused many deaths and serious injuries to Palestinians. The Ramallah Hospital was overwhelmed with injured people. It became obvious that a Trauma Center was needed. The Foundation allocated some of its land and a vigorous campaign to raise funds, jointly with the Federation, which resulted in the building of the New Ramallah Hospital in 2000. This is also known as the Sheikh Zayed Hospital.
Later, through large donations from foreign governments for health care purposes, and further allocation of land by the Foundation, two additional hospitals and a two-floor laboratory were built. Throughout the years, as funds became available, the Foundation donated money for furnishing, equipment and expansion of the original hospital.
In addition to the above health related services, the Foundation established a scholarship program for qualified, needy Ramallah and Palestinian students. This program is now run in conjunction with the Ramallah Federation Scholarship Program. Lastly, the Foundation owns an Old Age Facility, which is being run by the Women’s Arab Union of Ramallah, Palestine.