Mikhaiel served in military for 10 years and now he thrives to start his life from scratch; despite all the difficulties that he has been facing, decided to focus on the opportunities and not the obstacles.

He had started working in the rubber molding domain with his father since he was young, gained experience and even worked during the vacations of his military service.

Moreover, they've lost all of their equipment during the war due to the fact that their workshop’s region was under the control of armed groups for a long period of time. 

Now that he’s a father of two and also takes care of his parents accordingly his responsibility became bigger than ever, but that’s not a hindrance for him, cause he finds all the courage he needs every time he looks at his beautiful family.

So, he applied for Hope Center, hoping to use his great experience to commence his own business and provide a better life for his children. 

"I love my country Syria and I'll keep up working at my shop no matter what" 

Salem who is 66 years old, lives in one of the parish's houses with his wife and three children, during the war they were forced to leave their home for a short period of time and sadly his daughter got injured by a stray bullet and she is still carrying a piece of it in her hand, moreover his stationery shop was damaged by the missiles that were falling around it like rain.

Despite this all, he didn't lose hope and persisted to open his shop and tried to continue his regular life, because he is a strong-willed, hardworking person, who looks at life from a positive perspective, with considering the fact that he is the only breadwinner in his family, whose only wish is to secure the basics for his family.

The equipment that he has are from the day he opened the shop back to 1987, which became outdated and not useful anymore, that's why upgrading his shop became essential for him so that he won't lose more costumers.

With the help of Hope Center, Salem now has all the tools he needs that will increase his income and provide a decent life for his family.

Salim is a hardworking and strong-willed man, who lives with his three siblings along with being the main breadwinner in his family. 

Salim laid the foundation of his sewing experience back when he was young by helping his father in his free time and during his summer vacations.

In 1986, he opened his own workshop and everything was great, the business was profitable, which made him enlarge the project and specialize in sewing uniforms.

The story of his big success was torn apart after the war that hit Syria, which left him with a mounting burden of debt, later on he sold off most of his machinery and his workshop to pay them back.

But he didn’t give up and turned back to his business with the simple machinery that he has kept; day after day he realized, that what he makes is not enough comparing with the market demand.

Now, that he got the opportunity to open a new workshop and turn it step by step to what it was before, he is so thankful to Hope Center for giving him the chance to fulfill his family’s needs and livelihood expenses.

Everyone appreciates his valuable possessions and it is difficult to sell a property in order to face the difficulty of life and the difficult living conditions.

Ohaness faced this problem when he had to sell their house because of the lack of work at that time after he was discharged from the military.

He is 31 years old, served the military for more than nine years, now he lives with his brother, who serves in the military, and his mother in their small house.

He returned to his previous profession in rubber molding after completing his service. But his savings were not enough to open a business, he decided to apply to the Hope Center to get help with a purchase of a press machine.

This initiative helped him have the essential machine to continue and save the family's only source of livelihood. 

Nidal’s military service lasted nearly nine years, then after being discharged from military, he faced the harshness of life as well as the vague future.

Immediately after his service, he worked in his brother’s sewing workshop, but being new in this domain made his journey harder.

All of Nidal’s family members work in their own specialization, which motivates him to have his own business and to care of his family’s livelihood expenses.

The opportunity of having his own taxi planted a seed of hope in his soul, he applied and got accepted which made him extremely happy.

After the long years of sacrifice he made, Nidal now is thankful for the chance that he got from Hope Center, which made him the boss of himself, and the idea of ensuring a better income for him and his family made him more confident than ever. 

Melkon started working when he was in his early twenties with plans in his head to create a secure future for him and his mother.

From a young age he worked in two different domains to learn more skills and gain experience; his first job was in a mechanic workshop and in a short notice he started working on a lathing machine to increase his income, by time he became gifted in both jobs.

When the war hit the city of Aleppo, Melkon thought about a plan to save his career and he decided on traveling, in 2011 he left Syria looking for a better opportunities to make money and help his family.

Melkon worked in Lebanon nearly 11 years in both of the domains, in 2022 he decided to come back, start a family and settle in Aleppo now, he is a newly-married young man and they live together with his mother hoping that someday they will be able to buy their own house.

Supporting Melkon with the important equipment will have a positive effect on his work and he’ll be able to create a secure future for his child and provide his family’s needs and livelihood expenses.

Fredy served in the army for two years and after his discharge he was recalled for reserve military service, which lasted nearly seven years.

After that he thought of working in the aluminum manufacturing domain, but the lack of experience and costumers together with his financial circumstances weren’t encouraging for him.

Fredy is a newly married man and they are blessed with a daughter, but due to the economic crises they are living with his wife’s family. He is currently spending from his savings plus he is the only one responsible for all of his family’s expenses.

Fredy is aiming to work and be able to move out to their own apartment, provide a happy and secure future for his family.

After he heard about Hope Center, he was grateful for the opportunity to start working independently on his taxi and improve his income. 

Archelous lives with her husband and son in their modest house located in Al-Midan area; they were able to buy it many years before the war through the help of her family and a small loan from the bank that was repaid, in addition to selling the gold that she owned.

She used to work as a teacher in the Faculty of Science at the University of Aleppo, in addition to working as a nurse in hospitals and between houses, but because of her advanced age and the decline in her health status, she resigned and worked in selling Homemade food supplies, which she had been practicing since 1989.

Being the only breadwinner for the house, as her husband suffers from hearing and sight impairment, and he cannot work well in any profession. Her son works in a warehouse selling car parts, with a small salary that is not enough to cover his own expenses. 

The family used to own a house and agricultural land in Al-Yaqoubia village, but they were displaced from it and it was no longer possible to benefit from the agricultural lands that they had there.

Today, with the help of donors, Archelous was able to purchase the equipment that help her in her work and facilitates the preparation process in order to sell Homemade food supplies quickly and with higher efficiency, in addition to the ability to introduce new items that provide her with additional money to meet the difficulties of daily life.

"Holding a great responsibility at a young age is a huge challenge” .

in 2014 Hovsep’s family fled to Lebanon after selling their house and all their possessions to escape the harshness of the war and search for a better life.

When Hovsep was young, he loved all professions related to car repairing, especially since his father was a famous mechanic, so he benefited from this passion in Lebanon and learned a new profession, which is car spraying.

He worked there for 6 years until he gained a lot of experience, However, when the war hit Lebanon in 2020, it led directly to the deterioration of the economic situation in the country. Therefore, they decided to return to Aleppo.. Shortly after their return, Hovsep rented a small shop with a partner.

Unfortunately, the father suffered a stroke that left him paralyzed, and he became in need of special care, which forced the mother to work in a sewing workshop to help with the household expenses. After two years of working in Aleppo, Hovsep’s partner traveled abroad after selling the shop’s equipment, which was a shock for Hovsep, who did not give up and began borrowing the required equipment from his neighbors.

Today, thanks to the micro projects program, he owns the entire shop’s equipment and he became independent at work.

Hagob lived with his mother and his sister until the war came and took everything from him; their lives turned upside down like many Syrian families.

“We had tools and equipment in our workshop in Bustan Al Basha that were stolen during war. The workshop was also damaged and has recently been restored.”

Rehabilitating the workshop consumed all of their savings, and they were left with no source of income. Although their workplace is renovated, they still needed to buy the essential machinery to start the work.

Hagob started this career back in 2008 and now he does not own any tools, but rather works in another car body shop with a low salary, he decided to reopen his father's workshop.

He said: “My father taught me his profession in auto body repair workshop and everything related to this field that can help me in the future.”

All he needs is the support to get the equipment to start working again, with the help provided by Hope Center, he will be able to achieve a better income and then hopefully things will turn out for the better.

Like many other professions, sellers are going through some changes nowadays. Karahkin is the father of two kids Carine and Hagob,41 years old, and lives with his family. His wife works but with a low salary.

He said: “I’ve been in the selling business for 14 years. I'm driving my friend's pickup truck. I've always dreamed of having my own pickup truck, it’s so much easier when I drive to the shops and load goods”.

Karahkin and his family were safe throughout the war and were not injured, so they were grateful. Due to the high cost of living and the pick-up truck's high rents, he suffers from many financial obligations. One of the most important things that help him in his work and increase his income is buying a car, and thus he can save his money and his work will be easier.

His job requires transportation for the shipping and services and this car will allow karahkin to make a good living on his own.

One of the most difficult decisions taken by the Rezkallah's family was when they decided to sell their house to face the difficult living and economic conditions.

Although all family members work, all their salaries combined are no longer enough to cover the rising livelihood costs.

His father works as an employee in a mall, his mother is a clothing saleswoman, and his little sister is still studying. This young man is trying to help his family with expenses, and his work in Mobile software requires more development which is necessary because technology is constantly changing.

This ambitious young man, 22 years old, started working as a salesman in a mobile store in 2018. After two months, he decided to learn a new interest and enter computer and software maintenance to increase his income.

What distinguishes Rezkallah is the pursuit of self-development, and through his work for four years in this domain, Rezkallah became known for his skills, and the mobile shops near him began to provide him with work as well, despite his young age.

Now, Rezkallah has all he needs to run a successful business and secure a decent income for his family. 

Since he was young, Nader tried all the fields of construction work but the main profession that he loved and mastered was renovating old houses, in addition to his special skills in decorating and stone carving. 

In 2011, he had to leave his house in Homs due to the vicious war and moved to "Mashta Al Hilu" town where he continued working with other craftsmen despite all the difficulties, 2014 was the year when he managed to return home; unfortunately, his house was damaged and he didn’t find most of his equipment, which forced him to work for others. 

Nader lost his chance of working independently after losing his equipment and being the sole provider for his wife and their two lovely daughters, he was in real need to improve his work conditions and income, especially since he has all the required experience to achieve complicated work. 

With more than 20 years of hard work, Nader deserves all the support to go forward and develop his work.

When things got tougher, Mounzer, who is the only provider for his wife and their three children, had to find additional sources of income to guarantee that all of their needs would be met and that his kids would have a proper education.

The hardworking man works as a government employee besides working in the field of floor grinding and polishing, which has been his main occupation since 1991. 

Before the disastrous war began and had a negative impact on everything, Mounzer's work was thriving and everything was going well. He lost all of his equipment in 2013, and in order to support his family, he worked as a wall painter until he was able to save up enough money to purchase a new grinding and polishing machine, which allowed him to restart his business. 

Yet, the majority of the craftsmen who largely rely on the availability of electricity have found it to be a tremendous challenge. 

Equipping Mounzer with an electric generator will improve his income and alleviate the financial burdens of renting one, resulting in a better  livelihood conditions for him and his lovely family.

Sami has been working in the construction field for 25 years and this is his source to provide for his wife and their three children. His older son Jalal went for his mandatory military service, his daughter Jackie repairs dresses to cover her own expenses, while Elie, the youngest is a school student in the 7th grade.

During the chaotic situation of the war, Sami lost his equipment that was stolen twice and suffered a lot to compensate for a part of his loss. As the provider for a family of five, he thought of increasing his income, which became hardly enough for the essential needs and since his main work is building concrete blocks, he wanted to add the service of lifting blocks at the construction site, but securing the requirements for this process, especially the mini-winch was difficult due to the severe inflation, and in order to buy the equipment, Sami would have to borrow money and fall into debts.

The Micro Projects Program was his last hope to develop his work and ensure a decent living. Today, Sami's work opportunities will be doubled after having the needed equipment, and he will be able to guarantee a dignified life for his family. 

Kamel is the head of a big family of five that lives in Homs city, which includes his wife, two boys (Maher and George), and their daughter (Yara). 

He spent 23 years as an employee at Al-Forat Dam before retiring and returning to his family in Homs. Considering the economic crisis and the free time he had, Kamel made the decision to transform the hobby he has in the field of carpentry into a source of income. He began with basic tools at home, and with the help of his three children, he was able to open a modest workshop in 2018.

Maher, his eldest son, took on the role of marketing, while George and Yara joined their skills in painting with their father's artwork to produce beautiful handmade pieces. 

The acute lack of energy and the absence of key crucial machines that Kamel needs to ensure the quality of work were the main problems this hardworking family had to deal with. 

The viability of this workshop will be guaranteed through the efforts of the entire family, who are working hard every day to ensure a successful business.

Elias built a peaceful life in his small village Al-Dwair, without realizing that he would lose it all in a blink of an eye. 

The sole provider for his wife and their three children is a carpenter who opened his first workshop with his brother back in 1985. 

Elias's family lost everything they had and was displaced to the city of Homs, just like all the other families in this village who witnessed the horrors of the war, but, the skilled carpenter didn't let the difficulties get in the way of his work for the sake of the people he loves. 

Every now and then, Elias was able to buy a new machine; however, starting from scratch was not easy in a country that was just coming out of a war, and despite the fact that he worked nonstop, he was unable to afford the missing equipment, particularly the electric generator, that would have increased the productivity of his work.

Elias wants to develop his workshop and guarantee that it is equipped with everything needed to maintain his project successfully.

At the age of 16, Ayman decided to take responsibility and learn a profession; he worked for a hair salon in Al-Arman neighborhood where his family used to live before the war.

Unfortunately, their house was hit by a shell and it was severely damaged, which forced them to move and settle down in Fairouza village. Today, Ayman lives with his parents and only brother, and the two sons are providing for the family after their father had critical health condition that prevented him from working.

The young man worked in Lebanon for one year then when he returned, he continued working at home because he couldn’t afford to open his own salon.

Ayman applied to the Micro Projects Program aspiring to make his first step towards a better future, helping the enthusiastic hairstylist was the beginning of achieving his dream and he is ready to continue by himself depending on his talent and the skills he gained while working in several salons.

Milad's love for his family was his only source of inspiration when things got difficult.

He is a dentist from Homs, lives with his wife Julie, their two sons, Boulos and Nour, and their daughter, Angela, along with his elderly mother. He converted a room in his home into a dental clinic and began offering his services to the residents of the area.

His daughter Angela (24 years old) was born with Dandy-Walker Syndrome, which affected her mental abilities and she requires special care and when his life partner was tragically diagnosed with colon cancer, Milad had to work alone to support the family who relies on him.

The growing responsibilities stopped him from enhancing his work, and all of his income was hardly enough for basic needs and the monthly cost of his wife and daughter's treatment. 

Milad applied to the Micro Projects Program in the hopes that he would be able to renovate the old dental chair that he had been using since 2000. Now that his clinic is fully equipped, he has everything he needs to raise the quality of his work and increase his income. 

A few years ago, some friends asked Reem to help them with their nails designs and that's how she discovered her special talents and gained the needed skills and her family encouraged her to follow her passion. 

At first, she offered her services at minimal prices and worked at home just to acquire experience and create relations with the ladies in her neighborhood. 

She is a married woman and a mother of three beautiful daughters; her husband Firas works as a government employee and when his salary became barely enough for their needs and the financial burdens increased day after day, Reem decided to open a shop and work to help her family.

She applied to The Micro Projects Program where she found support to continue and improve her project, and now, the hard-working woman has all she needs to run her small business and guarantee its success. 

Hassan chose to stay in the country where he grew up and lived, while his wife and children traveled abroad seeking a better future.

Hassan is a barber who started his career as a barber back in 1990 and he managed to ensure his wife and their three children a dignified life through it until the cruel war started. He went to Lebanon and worked there for ten years then returned when the deteriorating economic situation affected all aspects of life. 

His house was severely damaged and he spent all the money he saved during years of hard work in order to repair it and settle down. Hassan's shop lacked some new tools and a battery to improve the lighting condition, which is essential in such a profession.

Supporting his shop with all the requirements made a positive change and lit a new hope inside the darkness that the war has left behind. 

"I have lost nine years and a half of my life in the army!" Bassam said, sharing his experience during the cruel war.

He was called for mandatory service back in 2011 and when he was discharged, he found himself responsible for a family of four, since his father passed away while Bassam was absent, and his only brother had an accident that affected his ability to walk, and he is now working in a vegetable shop. 

Today, Bassam lives with his mother, sister, and brother in Fairouza village and he works in construction because he didn’t have the chance to have a former job before the military service. 

This work didn’t ensure a sufficient income and Bassam started to think of another source of livelihood, which is suitable for his condition and enough to cover his family's essential needs. The mini-winch was his choice due to his work in the construction field and the good relations he created with many craftsmen. 

This support will guarantee an independent business and better income for this family. 

The economic situation in the country imposed a new reality where the family's main provider has to find more than a source of income to secure a decent living.

Fadi has been working as an employee for an oil factory since 2002, he lives with his wife and their two children in addition to his mother and sister and he is the sole breadwinner for the big family. 

While the financial burdens were increasing, Fadi's salary wasn’t sufficient at all to cover the essential needs, he decided to focus more on agricultural work as a sustainable source of livelihood. He used to work in the family's land in Maskanah village and he made his decision to prepare the land and improve its crops of grapes.

Planting new vines required setting iron stands, which he couldn’t afford due to the high prices. Now, Fadi planted the land and he is working hard to ensure a successful crop, waiting impatiently for his land to start producing and generously provide him and his family with a dignified living.

Jad Aghaby is 27, he lives with his mother and sister in Jaramana, his father left the family a long time ago and didn't take any responsibility for taking care of his children.

Since his childhood, Jad and his two sisters Joel and Jessica had to be self-dependent and work to afford their expenses.

He graduated from the Accounting Department and started working but unfortunately, in 2011 he was diagnosed with cancer and underwent two years of intensive treatment and had two surgeries.

In 2013, Jad and his sister Jessica decided to travel to Lebanon and work there because of the terrible condition of the country, but a year after, his sister was also diagnosed of having Leukemia and had to return to Syria to take treatment but the disease was in a late stage and she passed away in 2014.

The loss of Jessica was devastating.. and it took them a long time to get back to their normal life, especially for Jad, who suffered from the same disease and always felt death surrounding him.

However, he stayed in Lebanon until 2018 then he returned to Syria and started to work as an accountant in a clothing store until 2021 when he quit from work because of the low salary that didn't match the increasing costs of living.

Jad decided to try a different job so he worked with his friend at a detergent store to gain experience and then applied to the Micro-project program for his own detergent shop because he thinks it is a lasting career as the materials are required and always consumed.

supporting Jad with the detergent shop didn't just provide him with a good and sustainable income, but also helped in improving his psychological condition to overcome the tragedies he went through and have a positive outlook for the future

For more than fifty years, Nabil Al-Nasser lived in Al-Swaida city, got married there, had children, established a successful trading business, and had a stable home. He was about to reach his retirement age thinking that he had secured his family's future and would retire peacefully, but by the year 2010, his life had changed completely.

In the beginning, he lost all the goods of his shop due to a snowstorm that hit Al-Swaida city, which led to the collapse of the warehouse and damage to all the goods. His loss was great, and when he tried to start over, the war began in Syria, and soon its devastating effect reached the city of Al-Swaida, so he had no choice but to leave everything behind and travel to Lebanon.

Along with his family, Nabil took shelter at the Capuchins' monastery where he worked as a driver. He stayed in Lebanon until 2020 when the security and economic situation deteriorated there and his income became a lot less than the high costs of living so he decided to return with his family to Damascus, hoping to have a better life there. Unfortunately, their return coincided with Corona pandemic, and he, his wife, and his granddaughter were infected with the virus. unfortunately, his wife remained in intensive care for more than 6 months, which ended with her death in the year 2021, and it was a great shock to him and his children

Nabil’s psychological state was greatly affected by his wife's death, especially since his two daughters traveled abroad, and he remained alone with his son in the house. He decided to work and help his son with his living obligations so he started to work in a taxi but his income wasn't enough to cover the high taxi rent.

After being funded by the Taxi project, Nabil feels that he has regained his dignity and energy to work as he has become independent and capable to handle the house expenses and secure his future. 

Rima Albitar is 35 years old, married to Hesny Kasouha and they have three adorable daughters Mira born in 2010, Rita born in 2014 and Lana born in 2016.

She graduated from the agriculture institute and was living in peace and security with her husband in Alqseir village which is located on the Lebanese-Syrian borders that’s why after the start of the Syrian war, the village was rapidly attacked by the armed groups who terrified the citizens by spreading violence and fear all over which forced most of them to flee out to save their lives.

in 2011, Rima, her husband, and her newborn baby Mira were among those who lost everything they had in the village and were displaced to Kashkoul area in Damascus.

unfortunately, due to the security incidents in the country, her brother-in-law was missing and they knew nothing about his whereabouts this affected her husband’s health and he started to suffer from Multiple sclerosis which affected the family’s situation as he became unable to work as before in addition the high treatment costs that he wasn’t able to afford in many times.

Rima couldn’t handle seeing her daughters deprived of their basic living needs and decided to work and support her husband so she started working at an undergarment shop for more than 12 hours a day trying her best to afford the livelihood expenses, yet her salary wasn’t enough to meet the high costs of living especially due to the increasing prices and the deteriorated economic situation.

Rima needed to start her project to improve her life and she was accepted at the Micro-project program to be funded with the necessary goods and equipment to start her undergarment shop with all hope that this project will provide her with a decent income and help with improving her conditions.

Myassar Alsamara is originally from a modest family from a village called Kharba in the countryside of Daraa, which was occupied by armed groups after the outbreak of the war in Syria.

He is 50 years old, married to Sawsan Al-thibian, and they have three children: Tala born in 2004, Shadi 2007, and Fadi 2011, he lives with his family in Al-Dwalla neighborhood in Damascus. He was working as an employee in a government institution in the morning and after work, on his mini pickup as a driver along with his brother as they used to transport goods and products between areas.

However, during wartime conditions worsened, and shells began to hit the area heavily on daily basis, so Myassar sold the Pickup fearing its destruction.

Myasar continued his work and was trying hard to secure the living requirements for his family, but a great tragedy befell upon them in 2014 when his brother's wife died of an electric shock, which was a devastating matter to his brother, who committed suicide after her, leaving his three children without any parent.

That day, Myasar didn't only lose his brother but also became responsible for three young orphans under very difficult living conditions. He had to overcome his sorrows and surround his brother's children with his care and love to compensate them for the loss of their parents. 

In 2021, Myassar retired from his work and his conditions were very difficult as he was living on aids from churches and charities and was in dire need of a project of his own that would secure him a decent and sustainable income.

Through the Micro Projects Program, Myassar was supported to purchase a Mini Pickup, which he considered his lifetime project that will be his only source of income, contributing to improving his family's living, and providing them with a decent living.

Fadi Al-Khoury 62, is married to Amal Rashid and has five children: Lara, Layal, Lina, Lorraine, and Elias.

He lives with his family in a rented old flat on Al-Duwailah street, in poor living conditions. 

For more than 33 years of his life, Fadi worked as an employee at a governmental institution until his retirement in 2018, after that, he started to work as a taxi driver trying his best to afford his family's livelihood, especially since his son and daughter are still at school and his wife suffers from slipped vertebrae, and needed to undergo surgery which they couldn't afford.

Moreover, his daughter Layal got divorced and moved back to live with them while being pregnant and in a bad health situation. All of that overloaded Fadi with extra responsibilities toward his family and no matter how hard he worked he was unable to meet the living demands.

his daughter Lara started to learn the nail beauty profession to work and help her father with the house expenses, yet, the living circumstances were getting worse year after year and Fadi needed to have a sustainable source of income to improve his conditions.

through the help of Micro-projects Fadi was funded with the taxi project in the hope that it will form a positive transition in his life to help him enhance his living and preserve his dignity.

Thabet Khneifes is 56 years old, he is married to Rima Al-Qablan and has three daughters and a son, Rita, Rudeina, Salam, and Ghazi.

He used to live with his family in Tibneh village, in the countryside of Daraa, where he worked as an employee and they lived in stability.

However, the countryside of Daraa was one of the areas that were severely affected by the war, and its citizens were exposed to many dangers and threats. in 2015 and despite his poor financial situation, Thabit decided to leave the village and move with his family to live in the city of Damascus, as he preferred living in poverty rather than risking the lives of his family.

Thabet retired from his work in 2017 and then started working as a pickup driver to secure his family's livelihood and support his children to continue their education and in return, his children started to work and study at the same time to help their father; Rita started working in an optical shop, while his son Ghazi started doing several freelance jobs.

During the past two years, the security situation stabilized in his village so Thabet began to work in transporting vegetables and goods from the village to the city which enhanced his work but unfortunately, the owner of the pickup decided to sell it which made Thabet suddenly jobless and with no source of income. he tried to rent another one but the rent was very expensive and their financial conditions were deteriorating which affected his son's health as he had a blood clot as a result of the great psychological pressure but thanks to God he survived.

Thabet visited the Micro-Projects Office in Damascus and applied for the pickup project hoping to have this lifetime chance that will form a new chapter in his life and his request was approved.

Now after the funding, Thabet is working independently again and doing his best to improve his condition and secure a better living for his family.

Camille Seropian, 55 is married to Rania Mansour, and they have two kids, Jerious born in 2008, and Selina, born in 2020.

He worked as a Goldsmith from 1979 until the beginning of the war in 2011 when the work began to decrease gradually due to the repercussions of the war, so the owner of the workshop was forced to close it and travel abroad, which led to the end of Camille's work.

Camille found himself in a difficult situation, as he lost his main profession and all his savings and was living under critical security and economic conditions.

However, he did not give up and decided to start working as a mobile salesman using a bicycle; he used to load some goods on his bike daily and tour from place to place to sell them. His work began to improve until he was able to save some money and buy a small car that he used in distributing the goods until 2019 when the economic conditions began to deteriorate and houses' rents began to rise, so he sold his car to buy a small house to secure his family, and returned to working on his bicycle.

Camille used to ride long hours on his bike under extreme heat, cold, or rain because all his concern was to secure a decent living for his family, but this hard work caused him, over time, many health problems which made him unable to work with the same effort and as a result, his income decreased. 

However, he did not let despair creep into his heart, as he applied for the Pickup car project, and with the help of Micro projects he was able to buy the pickup that will allow him to develop his work, increase his income, and change his living conditions for the best

"When you do anything for the sake of your family, you do it with love, because family is the most valuable thing that one can have in life"

That is what George Alyoussef said.

he is a 30-year single man who lives with his mother and two sisters in his uncle's house at Altabbaleh.

after he finished the baccalaureate, he started working to support his family because they were in bad financial condition. In 2015, he volunteered at the Two Sacred Hearts center and began his journey in the humanitarian field, the work that became his passion and gave him all his effort and time, but unfortunately, life chose another path for him to take, because in 2017 his father was diagnosed with brain cancer and began his long and painful treatment which forced George to leave his job many times to be beside his father, and in the end, he had to quit and support his family during that difficult period, especially since he was the only man in the house and his two sisters and mother were taking their strength from him.

After his father died in 2018, George found himself broke because during that period he has spent all of his savings and began struggling to secure daily sustenance and means of livelihood for his family, especially since his mother was suffering from osteoporosis and gastritis, and his sister was suffering from irregular blood sugar and they both needs medicine on daily basis.

George was forced to do any work that would provide him with a better income, so he worked as a Suzuki driver until 2020 when the car's owner sold the car to travel abroad so he started to work at a café trying as much as possible to afford the living expenses.

However, his condition was deteriorating and his income did not cover the increasing costs of living demands and medication, and he was in dire need of a project that would provide him with a good and stable income to secure his obligations.

Through the Micro-Project Program, George got his opportunity, which he was seeking, and was funded by the mini-van project that will use to deliver goods, products, school students, and children to churches.

All we hope is that this project will constitute a turning point in his life and help him improve his living conditions and secure a greater income that allows him and his family to live in dignity.

Imad Mallouh and his sons are among the survivors who experienced all the horrors of war and reached the death point but God's great mercy saved them.

He is 52 years old, married to Nahla Ghumaid, and has two sons and a daughter, he used to live with his family in Al-Swaida countryside and he was working as a policeman there.

After the start of the war, he faced many threats and dangers that ended in his kidnapping with his two sons by the armed gangs in 2013, as they suffered from humiliation and violence until his family paid a huge ransom of money to set them free.

indeed, imad and his sons were released by a miracle of God and he decided after that to flee out Al-Swaida to the countryside of Damascus where he rented a small modest flat and lived there with his family.

He was transferred to work at Al-Mleiha police station which was considered a dangerous place as he and his friends were also attacked by the armed groups and were hostages for a period until they managed to escape.

Imad retired in 2019 but his financial conditions were very bad so he decided to start working as a taxi driver trying his best to afford his family's living as his son Fadi is training to be a lawyer, his daughter Lousiana is at the fourth year at university and his youngest son Roni is still at the tenth grade.

unfortunately, his income didn't meet the increasing living demands and he needed to have his own taxi to increase his income because he was giving two-thirds of it to the taxi owner.

With the help of the Hope Center, Imad was able get a taxi to work on as he believes is suitable for his age, it will make a good daily return to support his family and improve his situation.

George Bergheil is a very talented 44-year-old man, he is married to Janet Haddad, and they have two beautiful daughters, Chanel, born in 2006, and Christelle, born in 2012.

George is from the village of Maaloula in the countryside of Damascus. When he was twenty years old, he started practicing the profession of mosaic, seashell inlays, and wood carving. He soon proved a great talent in this field and became the passion that took him all his time and effort.

After his marriage, he tried to work independently, so he bought the machines and tools that will enable him to have his own workshop in Maaloula, and his work became very desirable because of the artistic touch that he added to the pieces.

he worked hard dreaming to establish his own design signature, unaware that these dreams would fade away and that his life would turn upside down after 2011.

soon after the war outbreak, the armed groups reached the village of Maaloula and began terrorizing the citizens, practicing the most horrific acts of violence, destruction, and killing which forced most of its citizens to flee to save their souls including George and his family who left everything behind to preserve their lives without being able to take any of their possessions or work machines, which unfortunately were completely stolen, in addition to destroying their house and looting the furniture.

George lost everything he worked for and had to start over in a new place under very harsh conditions and returned to be a worker at an engraving and mosaic workshop trying his best to cope with the high costs of living, and his wife also started working and helping him, trying as much as possible to secure the life requirements for their two daughters.

with the help of the Hope Center, George gained the chance he was dreaming about all his life as he was funded with all the machines, equipment, and materials to start his workshop where he will have the space to work, create, and secure a decent living for his family.

For more than twenty years, Samer worked as a tiler for long hours to secure his family the best possible living.

Samer is 45 years old, married to Eivon Makhoul and they have two kids.

Samer and his family couldn’t afford to rent their own flat so they lived in a small room in his parent’s house in the Aldwallaa neighborhood. He was also responsible for taking care of his old parents and securing their expenses which overwhelmed him with high living costs.

He didn’t mind doubling his efforts for his family's sake and even in wartime, under the shelling and explosions, he kept his faith in God and his will and kept struggling to survive and live in dignity.

However, at the beginning of 2022, all his endeavors vanished in a blink of an eye when the iron cutting machine broke and the grinding wheel hit his left arm which led to the rupture of the tendons of his hand and caused severe injury to his nerves and bones.

After that incident, Samer went through long sessions of treatment and became unable to continue his previous work; for the following nine months, he was with no income, living with the help of his relatives and the church’s support. 

His psychological situation was affected badly since he never used to need anyone’s help and used to work and feed his family from his efforts.

Samer started to deliver vegetables and other products to shops and although his income was very low, he insisted to work to support his family.

he applied for the pickup truck project seeking work that suits his health condition and at the same time secures him a sustainable source of income to improve his livelihood situation.

Micheline Halal, 44 years old, is married to Fadi Francis, and they have two sons and a daughter.

Micheline and her family are from a small village called Maaloula in the countryside of Damascus where they used to live and work in their grocery store. Her husband worked as a mural artist, and they were living in stability and safety until the fierce war began and its impact reached the village of Maaloula, which forced the family to close the grocery store, leave their home, and flee out.

Micheline and her children moved to live in her sister's house in Damascus, and her husband traveled to Lebanon to work and secure an income for his family hoping that the war would end quickly so that they could return to their hometown. Two years later, Micheline decided to rent a house in Jaramana and move to live there with her family, especially after she knew that her house in Maaloula was completely damaged and all the furniture was stolen.

During that period, her husband returned from Lebanon, and the whole family participated to secure the living costs, even though their children were working part-time jobs after school to help with the household expenses but their conditions were still deteriorating.

With the help of Hope center, Micheline had the chance to have a mini-market with all the needed equipment and goods, and she is now able to work and support her family to improve their situation and have a decent life.