A long time ago, Magi started working in the sales business, she worked with many materials like make up products, cotton wear and clothing in general.

The 52-years-old mother of three, had her life changed drastically because of the ugly war, after it teared the family apart; one of her sons lives in Lebanon, the other is now settled in Netherlands, he left the country after an unfortunate kidnapping accident he went through.

Like all of that wasn’t enough to burden Magi with worries, her husband went missing 6 years ago, and till this day they have no idea what happened to the poor man. Magi lives with her third son Krikor in a rented house in Al-Suleymanieh area after they had to sell their old house when the war started.

Today Magi works from home in selling clothes, she’s been doing this job for many years now and made good acquaintances in the market, and many clients that she works with regularly, she also participated in seasonal galleries for three years in a row. However, there are many obstacles facing Magi, like the increasing costs of the used materials and the bad financial circumstances the community is having. In these hard times, the hardworking woman has to work extra hours, for instance she works as a hair dresser between houses in order to increase her income.

With the help of this program, Magi will be able to stock many items at wholesale price in larger amounts, thus she will increase her profit margins, and thus provide a more decent living for herself in these difficult times. 

Since his teenage years, Hovig Chaprazian entered the mechanical cars maintenance field, and it has been his profession for 25 years. But this road hasn’t been easy, the war with its start cost him his job. The workshop he worked in for many years was closed and he was unemployed for a while, but being the only provider for his parents he had to do something. For a while he worked in a similar field of industrial engine maintenance to provide a living in a time that was very hard on the whole city of Aleppo. Their house was in a dangerous zone of Al-Midan and as much as the neighborhood was targeted with mortar shells that the family had to move out. Hence, in 2014 Hovig with his parents and sister were displaced to a relative’s house in a much safer neighborhood for a while. 

Hovig wasn’t happy about how things ended, he was offered a job in his main profession in Latakia so he went there for 4 months. After coming back from latakia, he made a partnership with an acquaintance for approximately a year, and since things were going good for them both, Hovig felt relieved and was thinking about starting a family specially that his relatives offered him their house to stay in, and indeed he got married in 2016 just after Aleppo situation got a little better. But unfortunately, not all good things last, like his business partnership, Hovig lost the workshop, all that he was left with is some tools and equipment he was able to maintain and keep. Like losing his livelihood income wasn’t bad enough, his relatives that gave him their house to stay in, asked him to evacuate the apartment, Hovig had no choice but to leave.

Today Hovig, with his wife rosy and two-years-old son Mike are all living with Hovig’s parents in the old house, after repairing the damage that occurred because of the war.

Hovig is the only provider for them all, since neither his wife or his old father work. With a little help Hovig will be able to rent a workshop and purchase the tools needed to proceed his work, specially that his acquaintances and clients are all very supportive of him. This way he will be able to provide a decent life for his family. 

The family business that George Aghazarian and his brother lost, was nothing compared to losing their beloved sister and niece…this great loss which changed their lives forever.

George Aghazarian works in car sheet repairing, he had an equipped workshop for car repairing in Handarat (an area few miles away from Aleppo, the family lost their workshop with the start of the war, and before they had the chance to cope with this devastating reality, tragedy stroke again in 2013, this time the news were more wrecking; while his sister and her daughter were going home in AL-Suleymanieh, a shell fell out of nowhere causing immediate death of the mother and daughter on her birthday. 

The grieving family couldn’t imagine how life would continue without their loved ones. they sold everything they had and decided to leave the country. But George and his small family didn’t have the option of leaving, the family found themselves with no house or a job, so they had to start from scratch again. Their church supported them with a house to live in temporarily, and George went back to his work field but this time working in other peoples’ workshops and splitting the majority of his profits with the owner.

George has been through so much suffering, it is time for him to start a new chapter in his life, one that is optimistic and bright, so he can continue his journey of healing. Having his own workshop and equipment will motivate him more and more to restore his life for the upcoming days. 

There is nothing more difficult for a man than to be left without a job. Bassam Shahoud knows that feeling very well.

The 57-years-old used to be the manager of a cloth manufacturing workshop, in addition to working on a pickup truck that he owns for transporting goods in his free time. He was able to earn enough to secure a good living for his wife Bahija and their son Rami.

Their rented house was on the fifth floor in Al-jabrieh, but Bahija had lipedema, which made going up and down those 5 floors impossible, they had to rent another house that would be more convenient for her condition, and indeed they moved to another place. 

By that time the war started in the area of Bassam’s work place; Al-Helloq, which was one of the first areas to be affected by war, Bassam lost his job, he had to sell the vehicle. Shortly after the closing of his workshop that he used to work in, Bassam lost his last source of income.

With all the increasing danger in Aleppo, Bassam took his family and left to the countryside of Tartous city, which was much safer.

Since the family moved back to Aleppo Bassam is now jobless, and the only one working in the house is Rami, who works in a hair salon. Rami’s salary is not enough to support the family of three especially that Bahija, his mother, suffers from many diseases and health problems caused from the lipedema.

Bassam has long expertise in the cloth manufacturing business, but this type of project needs a large capital. He needs another domain that is both achievable and age appropriate for Bassam. That’s why he chose the taxi which is his way to insure a reasonable income for the family.

When you are responsible for a family, you want to protect them in any possible way, you feel torn between staying under the shells raids or flee and face the unknown somewhere else. 

Aboud Kalaghasi went through that experience of living abroad, when his work as a barber was affected during the war to the point that in 2013, he had to find another job. He became a car driver which was a better income for him, but when the safety of his family was jeopardized by the war situation that was going on in Aleppo, Aboud made a decision to leave Syria, and along with his family they went to Venezuela; a country that soon became worse than Aleppo.

Four years in Venezuela were extremely hard to endure, one day in an armed robbery attempt, Aboud was shot. They were desperate to get out of there, but their financial situation was preventing them from coming back. However, due to the bad situation there, the church in Aleppo was helping people from their parishes that went to Venezuela during the Syrian war to return home. Kalaghasi family was one of the returning families. While Rim; Aboud’s wife, came back to Aleppo with her two sons Elias and Joud, Aboud stayed in Lebanon and worked as a barber there to provide for his family. 

For two years, he was separated from his family, but his days away from his family came to an end. After two years in Lebanon, Aboud returned home and he is now planning on working as a taxi driver, a job that he practiced for many years before he went to Venezuela six years ago.

It is the most convenient job for him because it has a good profit margin, and it is something that he knows well and at the same time a stable source of income for the family of four. 

I am Elias Mashek, 28 years old, I live with my mother Magi, she is 62 years old and my brother George who is 37 years old in my parents’ house in Al-Midan area. In 2005, I started working as a hair dresser for women in a hair salon in Mogambo area, I worked there for five years and I gained a lot of experience during that time. in august 2010 I was recruited in the military service, my service was in Damascus city, I spent 8 years there until I was discharged in 2018, during these eight years I kept following up the latest trends and whenever I got the chance I worked in hair dressing, not just for the money but because this business needs to always be updated on the new style techniques and materials. I worked hard during that time to keep going and not to give up on my passion about this work. Currently I’m working in a hair salon in Mogambo area for someone, but my salary is very low, around 80$ per month. My project is a to open my own hair salon in the same area, I can’t afford the shop rent and the equipment that I need like (mirrors ,chairs ,tools…), my hope that this project will provide the independence that I am looking for, and will be the rock foundation for my career in the future.

My name is Kamel, a 35 years old single man, I live with my father Yorghaki and my mother Grassiela Haddad in our home in Al-Azizyeh area. When I was 19, I studied in a commercial institute in Aleppo university and During that period from 2004 to 2010 I worked in lots of jobs; I worked as a manager in Coffee shops, and also in wedding planning with a company called “Pure Events” and as a photographer with a magazine called “Home Style” in Dubai. My suffering journey started when I was recruited in the military service in 2010, I spent 8 years of service, this affected me majorly, I faced depression and anxiety just until last year. My service was in Damascus, in Al-Mazzeh area, which was a very dangerous and critical zone, we were attacked many times, I lived in constant fear. After 2018, I found myself as a destroyed individual, with no job or clear future. I felt that I wasted my life and time for the last 8 years, until I decided to start a new project. I applied at the Hope Center for a photographing equipment; camera and lenses to start my own business, I chose this project because I have a very good experience in this work and this project will be my chance of getting my life back on track.

My name is George Boulos, a 42 years old married man. I live with my wife and our 3 children; my wife Mariam is 41 years old; she is unemployed because she has to look after our children; Fadi and Shadi who are school students, and Joseph who is only two years old. In 2000, I had 2 carpentry workshops in Al-Hellok and in Bustan Al-Basha, but in 2013, the armed groups took over both of the areas and stole everything I had in there. I was also forced to leave my house in Sheikh Maksoud, and I had to move to another house in Al-Midan that was much more expensive to rent. I was unemployed for 5 years. During those 5 years, I worked in repairing furniture, but not as a stable job. I also depended on the church aids to survive. I am currently working for a company that makes furniture for houses, but my salary is very low, as I do not have my own equipment. I want to have my own workshop because it will increase my income and will make me an independent person.

My name is George Ghazal Alber, I am 33 years old and married to Maria Tabakh. We have two little children, a girl named Cynthia 3 years old, and a boy Maiko who is 1 year old. I live with my family in a rented house in Sulaymania area in Aleppo city. I work as a photographer and video maker with my brother Bashir in our father’s shop, we inherited and learned this job from him, he spent his life building a career in this field and now we continue his hard work with the same passion. Unfortunately, during the war time, the shop was damaged by the frequent bombing in the time between 2012 and 2016, the worst time was just right outside the front of our shop, my brother was there but luckily he survived. We have put a lot of money over those years on fixing the shop damages. We need to develop our cameras because they became very old and our work in (weddings, events...) requires up-to-date technology and I can’t afford a new video camera. I am currently working by renting a video camera from different sources whenever I get a filming offer, this costs at least 10$ per hour and the shortest video is two hours of filming, hence after all my hard work I get only 8$ from all the video, this doesn’t even cover the cost of my house rent. My project is a video camera brand Sony SDR_AX 1, by having this camera I will become more independent and my income will improve greatly.

George Saghir is a 48 years old married man and a father of two children; Mary 13 years old, and Antonio 1 year old. They live in a flat in Al-Jabrieh. His wife Abeer is unemployed, so he is the sole provider for his family. His brother Michel Saghir is a 53 years old married man, and a father of 3 girls; Mariana, Sally, and Youstina. His wife Nada is unemployed and all of his children are school students, so he is the family supporter. Nichola Loze is married to George’s and Michel’s sister Afroseen, they have a son named Abdo, he is 28 years old. Before the war in Aleppo in 2012 the two brothers George and Michel and their brother-in-law Nichola all used to work together in a carpentry workshop in Al- Mouslimieh area, they also had two other workshops in that area, but they lost them with all the equipment, the machineries, and tons of wooden materials because of the war. They continued working in their workshop till the armed groups took over the area in 2012. They had a very successful business, but after losing their workshops they became without a job. In 2012 George and Michel bought a mini-van and started working on it to provide the basic needs for their families. Nichola was looking for a stable job, but he could not find one after 8 years of war, he now works with some of his friends in any field that he finds available. The three men want to reopen a carpentry workshop together that can guarantee a stable income for 3 families. They have the needed experience to start this project and they hope to receive the financial support to complete their ambition.

When you start your career since 1980, and practice it for more than thirty years it becomes a part of who you are, and what you are known for in your community.

Today, Nuhad Lucsa has worked as a driver from the age of 19. It was more like a family business, he was working on Idleb highway, while his brother worked on the Homs-Lebanon highway, the two would occasionally exchange places. 

Nuhad has always loved what he does for a living. The man spent his life driving between two cities, but in winter he used to stay in Aleppo. He was a well-known and trustworthy driver hired by more than one school, and by the Christian Sunday schools and when the school year is over, he goes back to Al-Qnayeh village his hometown in Idleb city, where his family stays while he goes back and forth. In 2010, Nuhad bought a house in Al-Midan for the family to settle in, not knowing that one day they will flee from Al-Qnayeh and live in Aleppo for good.

When Al-Qnayeh was taken by armed groups, the empty houses like Nuhad’s were confiscated forcibly which was a huge loss for the family, but what overwhelmed them even more was that Nuhad lost his job, since most of the highways were closed or extremely dangerous, and also most schools had stopped transferring the children by bus. All the family was left with Sana’s (Nuhad’s wife) retirement salary which obviously wasn’t enough, so Nuhad sold his mini bus to get some money.

Today, Nuhad works on a rented taxi and he has to split his hard work profit with the car owner, let alone the possibility of losing this source of income at any moment if the owner decided to sell the vehicle. 

With a little help Nuhad can have his own car, a thing which he have been wishing for a long time, he has many school students that will hire him, and a huge list of clients to work with when having his taxi. 

Antoine Ajami is 36 years-old man married to Rasha, in 2011 the couple were blessed with Toufic; their only son. 

First, the couple were living in his family’s house with his mother and sister. Rasha used to work as a makeup artist and Antoine used to practice his original profession in car furnishing in order to provide for the family, but after the birth of Toufic, they had to move to another house on rent. Despite the hard-living circumstances, they were managing their finances and making it through, until one day a tragedy happened, a sudden explosion near Antoine while he was working on a car, his leg was injured seriously.

The next 5 days after the incident were the hardest, he stayed in St. Luis hospital until his situation became stable, but unfortunately the injuries of his leg were severe, doctors implanted metal plates and screws during surgery, although they were able to save his leg, but his walk and posture were affected permanently. 

The unfortunate thing, which made things worse is that he couldn’t practice his profession anymore, his wife also stopped working due to neck and back pains she got, providing for the family became an exhausting burden. Luckily the hospital helped them with the surgery costs, but the high costs of living in such economic crisis with having to pay rent are hard enough. 

Moreover, Rasha has permanent medication prescriptions for gland condition which is a heavy extra burden too. 

A taxi car is a reasonable solution for Antoine; as he has a prior experience in driving; since he worked on a taxi for 2 years back in 2009, and most importantly driving doesn’t demand much physical activity or painful positions which might discomfort his leg. Also, the income is fairly good as long as one puts an effort and works hard, and that is exactly what Antoine has in mind for his new driving career.