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The equipment that he has are from the day he opened the shop back to 1987, which became outdated and not useful anymore, that's why upgrading his shop became essential for him so that he won't lose more costumers.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

“It’s hard to beat a person who never gives up”

Despite all calamities, Youssef Al-Samara has never stopped fighting and was full of hope that the coming days are going to be better.

He worked as a hairdresser since 2002 and his income was good to afford his living expenses, but after the outbreak of the Syrian war, he was called to join the military service as he served in fierce war zones which put him under dangerous accidents.

He was living in a rented flat in Dhaheit Alassad but during the war, the area was surrounded by armed groups and his flat was totally damaged and his furniture was looted.

During that period, he got married to Amal Hamzah and started to work as a taxi driver after his service duty to support his family while his wife started to work looking after elderly people to help with house demands. 

Youssef’s service was very destructive for him, as he was shot in the left hand and then injured by missile fragments until the year 2018 when he was affected by a chemical attack that led to lung irritation.

As a result, Youssef was discharged from the military service and put under treatment until his recovery but due to his health condition, he couldn’t continue to work in his profession as a hairdresser and was forced to work on a rented taxi and pay most of his income to the taxi owner trying his best to work as hard as possible to secure the basic demands for his wife and kids Joud and Taya.

After applying to the Micro-project and being financed to have his own taxi, Youssef said:

“The project will change my life forever because instead of paying half my income to the taxi owner, I will be paying for improving my life and securing my kids’ future”

Often, we are born to encounter many life obstacles, but the defining point is either giving up or challenging and accepting these obstacles and continuing our lives while we are full of hope and optimism, which was the choice of thirty-two-year-old Johnny Mardini.

Johnny was born into a humble family consisting of a hardworking father who worked day and night for the sake of his family and a loving mother who did everything she could to give love and care, especially since Johnny's older brother George suffers from a mental disability since birth that stopped his growth.

However, Johnny never hesitated to be responsible for his brother or his parents; so he learned the plumbing profession from his father and began to work with him at the workshops and at the plumbing store, trying his best to help with the household expenses.

unfortunately, in 2011 a fierce war broke out and stole Johnny from his family, as he was taken for military service to serve in conflict areas, where he used to be absent for many months without being able to communicate with his family, the thing that made them live in great fear and affected their health. After ten bitter years of suffering and life threats, Johnny was finally released in the year 2021.

After he returned, Johnny did not hesitate to work as a plumber, in the evenings he stayed with his father in the store and tried to give his brother the care he missed in his absence.

Johnny was striving to secure the most basic needs of the house, not to mention the monthly medicine costs for his parents, and despite his tight conditions and poor financial situation, his warm smile did not leave his face, and he kept hoping that life would reward him for his endeavors one day.

Indeed, this self-made man deserved the support of the Micro-project Program in Damascus, where his plumbing store was funded with the necessary equipment and materials that will increase his income and improve his living situation, in the hope it will reflect positively on his life and future.

losing her husband at the age of 26, and being responsible for a newborn baby at the same time is tough for any woman to handle, but Nancy Alshoufi decided to direct her love and care to her baby who will grow up without his father's support.

Her in-laws were also in great shock as they lost their son at a very young age, Nancy decided to keep living with them trying her best to look after them after their huge loss.

This young lady’s sacrifice had no limits as she took a full-time job to afford her son’s basic demands and at the same time help her in-laws with the house expenses. She also decided to finish her education at the faculty of translation as she is now in her third year continuing her journey in work and study with great passion.

In 2019, Nancy took a Micro project management course at GOPA and won funding for starting a small nuts shop in the neighborhood which will be additional income for her but unfortunately, the start of her project was in parallel with the Corona crisis in the country which led to a huge increase in the prices and the fund she got wasn’t enough for buying 20 percent of the shop’s goods and materials.

Yet, she kept trying with the help of her father to sustain the shop and manage its capital to buy new goods, but that became difficult as time passed because of the hard economic conditions of the last two years.

Although Nancy was struggling to make a balance between her living expenses and raising her son in good conditions, she didn’t lose faith in God who led her to apply at the micro-project office in Damascus and she was supported with the necessary goods and materials that will increase her income and ensure the stable and secured income.

“The human’s will is what defines a person and how far he is going in his life journey”

Iskandar was raised by loving and supporting parents, his father used to work as a tiler and handled his tough work to afford his family a decent living.

As soon as he grew up, Iskandar realized he wanted to be a hairdresser, so he started learning about this profession and worked hard to gain field experience dreaming to have his own Salon in the future and be independent.

Unfortunately, with the beginning of the war in 2011, all of his dreams have gone as the family went through many dangers and horrors in addition to the lack of work and livelihood necessities, until the great disaster in 2013 when Iskandar was injured by a mortar explosion in the shoulder behind Al-Jahez Park where he was taken to the hospital and underwent a surgical operation.

After recovering from the incident, Iskandar was in a bad psychological situation since he spent all of his savings on treatment, so he traveled to Lebanon seeking safety but he wasn’t lucky in finding a proper job and his family was in a bad financial situation so he decided to defeat his fears and go back to Syria where he returned to work in his profession until he was able in 2019 to have his own hairdressing salon in Aldwalaa to be close to his family as his sister Miray grown to be a talented make-up artist and started working with her brother at the Salon.

However, in the past three years, Iskandar was struggling due to the terrible electricity situation and long cuts which affected his job greatly and led to decreasing his income as a result.

After applying to the micro-project program, Iskandar was financed with the electricity generator that will provide him with more working hours and increase his income, as a result, hoping that this improvement will enable him to support his parents and at the same time get married and establish his own family.

"A hero is someone who gives without thought of himself, and Shadi was that hero in his son’s eyes”

Shady Maqsoud 48, never hesitated to give all for the sake of his family and kids.

He is married to Jumana Qazi and they have two sons Johnathan born in 2003, and Julian born in 2007 

Shady started working as a painter at the age of nineteen to support his parents with the living expenses, and for many years he worked as hard as he could to save his dignity and never need anyone’s help.

He also continued to work in his profession during the difficult years of war and when his income decreased, he immediately searched for a part-time job to support himself as he got employed as a driver at Damascus-health-administration.

And even when his health started to deteriorate and the doctor recommended that he must stop doing any painting work as he suffers from allergic asthma and the smells are very harmful to him, he insisted to keep working to secure the basic demands for his family.

However, his son “Johnathan” realized how tired his father was, and all his efforts to put the food on the table at the end of the day so he decided to take a part-time job after his schooling trying to handle some of the huge burdens as much as possible.

Shady found his way to the Micro project program as he applied for the taxi project seeking a stable and better income.

He said after being financed:” Having a taxi of my own after all these hardships I been through is something unbelievable, the project will provide me a sustainable income that I will depend on in raising and educating my sons, as well as restoring the hope in my life”

Behind the great amount of sadness and calamities that Fahed has been through in his life, there is a loving, confident heart and a solid will to improve himself and save his family from their tragic situation.

Fahed Farah, 34, is a caring husband and father of two sons; Farah, born in 2017, and Charbel born in 2019. He lives along with his family in a dilapidated flat in Al-Dwalaa neighborhood.

At the beginning of his twenties, Fahed was called to the military service for eight tough years of his life, he had to face the most difficult conditions until his discharge in 2018. He was then facing a harsher reality as his son was diagnosed with a brain tumor and needed to undergo a surgical operation which cost Fahed all his savings in addition to selling his wife’s gold jewelry.

Fahed was on the edge of a breakdown, but his will was stronger than his conditions, so he decided to defeat all the obstacles and start over. He returned to the physics college to continue his education in the morning, and in the afternoon, he started working as a taxi driver and a physics tutor at the same time, trying his best to secure the living demands and his son’s medications for misfunction in the Hypothyroidism which led to lack of growth.

Sorrowfully, such an effort didn’t improve his situation because half of his income was going straight to the taxi owner and he was looking for a miracle to save him from his hardship.

Now, after applying to the Hope center to have his own Taxi, Fahed is determined to improve his livelihood, finish his university study and provide his family with decent living circumstances.

George is a married man and the father of three daughters Dina, Rita, and Rima.

George suffers from speech disorder but that didn’t prevent him from working or having a normal lifestyle as for the last 30 years, he has been working at the Ministry of Health as a physical therapist.

He handled his tough work schedule for many years to ensure a dignified life for his family, because all he cared about was raising his daughters to become successful individuals in their lives, and that is what he gained as Dina is studying at the Faculty of Media, Rita is at the Faculty of Humanity science and Rima is at the Faculty of Law.

Although George's financial situation wasn’t going good, George tried to protect his family and provide them with all their living demands, but after being at the edge of his sixties and about to be retired he became unable to continue the same effort in his profession, and started to worry about how he will secure his daughters future, especially that they were living in bad condition and barely able to afford their expenses by the end of the month.

Now thanks to the micro-project program, George was supported to have his own mini-market that he will run with the help of his wife and daughters, so they get back on their feet again with a steady source of livelihood.

Wadie Abou Assaleh, a 60-year-old man, is married to Claire and they have two sons George who since his born in 1994 suffers from a mental disability, and Elias born in 1991. 

From 1985 to 2011 Wadie worked as a goldsmith along with his brother at their workshop but after the outbreak of the war, their profession was affected badly. Hence, his brother traveled abroad and Wadie was forced to close the workshop and work as a private driver for an archbishop on the Damascus-Beirut international road which provided him with a decent income during the years of war.

Wadie dedicated his life to the sake of his boys as he provided his son George with all the love and care he needs; he wanted to support his son and prove to him that disability is not an inability, so in 2012 he rented a mini-market near his house and filled it with goods so his son could do something valuable and be socially involved with the people every day.

His other son Elias traveled to Erbil but he couldn’t’ find a proper job and Wadie had to send him money every month to secure his living. Unfortunately, by the end of 2019, the corona epidemic affected the situation all over the world and the travel movement stopped between Syria and Lebanon which left Wadie jobless.

His son Elias was also in a bad financial situation in Erbil and wanted to return to Syria so Wadie had no choice but to sell his car to pay him the military service fees.

Although Wadie started the market to enhance his son's social abilities, now even with its poor amount of goods, it became the only source of income for the whole family. Giving him the chance to renew his goods will help him overcome all the tough days and allow him to improve his family’s situation.

As long as you keep smiling in the face of your difficulties, life will reward your great hope. 

Simon Tannous is 44 years old, he is married and has two adorable girls, Hala born in 2008, and Lana born in 2013.

Simon and his family live in a small rented flat in Kashkoul and he also works in his mini-market in the same area.

He was an employee as a driver at the construction administration in Damascus since 1996, but his low income wasn't matching his living expenses which made him decide to have additional income, he started his own mini-market shop in 2010 where he used to work in the afternoon.

Unfortunately, after about three years of the war’s outbreak, the violent acts spread all over and as a result, the armed groups robbed and vandalized his shop which cost him many losses.

Yet, Simon didn’t hesitate to borrow some money and buy new goods to keep the work going which annoyed the troublemakers in the area and they reported him to the police station for selling alcoholic drinks illegally. That cost Simon five years of his life in prison until the church intervened to prove his innocence and he was set free in 2019.

After his release, Simon’s health was affected badly as he was suffering from Back disc pains which made him quit his job at the administration and returned to work at his mini-market.

During the last years, Simon’s family survived with the support of the church’s relief aid and the help of their friends and relatives. Simon couldn’t provide his shop with new goods to improve the work and increase his income.

However, despite all the difficulties he has been through, Simon’s smile never disappeared and he kept praying for a better future. Indeed, his hope wasn't disappointed and with the help of the Micro-project program, he was supported with a proper amount of goods that will increase his income and improve his situation.

Sometimes the only thing that can keep you fighting, is believing that one day everything is going to be better.

Najeh Ajaiby, 52, has never stopped believing that good things are coming on his way.

he is originally from Egypt and came to Syria in 1997 looking for better work opportunities, so he started to work in his profession as a carpenter in different workshops. Soon after he got married to Samar AL-Abdoun and had three children Ruba, Fadi, and Mina.

Najeh worked hard for many years in Al-Swaida until he became able to establish his own carpentry workshop in 2009 in the same area. His wife and kids were living in Damascus so Najeh was planning to move his workplace there to be close to them but in 2011, the war started in the country and the deteriorating security situation in the area prevented him from moving. For more than ten years, Najeh was forced to be far from his family working as hard as he could to secure all their living needs and provide his kids with proper education to secure their future.

Indeed, his daughter Ruba is studying now at the Engineering college, his son Mina is in the faculty of Medicine while the other son Fadi has won a scholarship to study flight engineering in Moscow.

Even though Najeh was delighted to see his kids succeed in their studies, he had to work harder to meet the increasing costs of living which were unbearable, especially within the electricity blackouts situation in the area which affected his work directly as his customers started to deal with other workshops which have electric generators and can do the work on time.

Now after being financed with the electric generator and the necessary equipment, this self-made man has the chance to improve his work which will change his situation for the better and secure decent living conditions.  

We are all aware of the violent acts of war during the last decade which affected the lives of many innocent people.

Edwar was one of those people who was exposed to a kidnapping incident that turned his life upside down.

Edwar Darwish was born in 1972, married and has a son ‘Gassan” born in 2014. He lives with his family in Kashkoul, a Damascus suburb and for more than 10 years, he worked as a bus driver on Damascus-Aleppo international road.

His tragic story began in 2012, a few months after he bought a taxi in installments. he was looking to be self-employed with a better and more sustainable income after completing the car's price but unfortunately, while he was working in the taxi, some masked men blocked his way with their guns and kidnapped him, and took his taxi.

He was captive for several days under severe torture until he was able to escape during the night and kept running till he reached Damascus suburb road as he headed to a police station and reported for his kidnap and the stolen car.

Edwar was in a pathetic situation as he stayed for more than a year recovering from the incident’s physical and psychological effects, his financial situation has also deteriorated as he had to pay back all the remained installments in addition to his treatment costs.

Edwar returned to his previous work and although the income was a lot less than the living expenses, he kept working hard trying his best to secure the basic demands for his family but with the increasing costs of living, his situation became worse than before and they were barely able to afford for their daily food.

Through the Micro project programs, Edwar was financed to have his own Taxi, which will provide him with a second chance to make up for his losses and restore his life by having a decent income.

After more than 20 years of a stable career and secure living conditions, Anwar Hanna, the 63-year-old man was a victim of displacement and losses.

Anwar was living with his family in Erbin area, in the countryside of Damascus, he was working as a blacksmith at his private carpentry workshop and their life was full of peace and security which all was ruined after 2011 as the terrorist groups broke into the area and spread their violence and horror at over. Anwar was very concerned about his family’s life and took them out of the city under shelling and bombing without being able to take any of their belongings, all that he cared about was to keep them far from being hurt.

They moved for a period to Sednaya then to Jaramana where they rented a small and modest flat to shelter themselves after losing everything they worked for in their entire life, their house, furniture in addition to the workshop tools, and equipment.

Anwar had to start from scratch so he got employed at a factory in the industrial Adraa where he worked for more than 10 hours a day so he could be able to put food on the table at the end of the day, his work was hard and the income was very low but Anwar was trying his best until his health condition started to deteriorate and he became unable to continue the hard work.

His son’s income was barely covering the house rent and expenses so Anwar had to keep working in order to secure the basic living needs.

He started to work as a taxi driver with 25% percent of the taxi wages a day and spent many days touring the streets trying to improve his financial situation but couldn't meet the high costs of living.

Anwar decided to apply for the taxi project because it will provide him with a sustainable and good source of income which will be enough for the house expenses and to improve their living circumstances.