Pat Boone donates lyrics to museum

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JERUSALEM, Feb. 13 (UPI) -- U.S. singer, actor and evangelical Christian Pat Boone presented the Yad Vashem Holocaust Museum a Christmas card with the "This Land is Mine" lyrics.

Boone, 78, wrote the song to accompany the tune from the 1960 movie "Exodus," and scribbled the lyrics on the card.

He gave the card to Shaya Ben-Yehuda, the museum's managing director of International Relations Division, Wednesday, a museum news release said. A recorded performance of Boone performing the song was screened.

Boone said he was told by officials at the museum they want every Israeli child to learn the words to the song, which professes love for and ownership of the Land of Israel, The Jerusalem Post said.

Boone is visiting Israel with a delegation of some 200 members, led by former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee.

The singer told the newspaper he wants to buy land in the Galilee.

Conversations with Israeli friends led him to sell over the Internet, one-inch square plots and their GPS coordinates to U.S. supporters of Israel, to give them a stake in the land, he said. "Even though most of those who buy will not come in person, you can go online and see it through Google Maps. Those who do come in person can use their personal GPS units to find their spot and stand on it," he told the newspaper.