“Where words fail, music speaks.” That’s how George replied when we asked him about the reason behind his love for music. 

Since he was an 8-year-old, George was fascinated by music and the industry in general.

His parents decided to enroll him in a music institute where he chose to learn Cello, his love for music didn’t stop there, he used to go to his uncle’s studio to watch him produce music for many artists. After a short time, he started helping his uncle with his work for 15 years till the war started.

In 2011 George joined the army and served his country for 10 years, in this decade a lot changed; during this time, he lost many of his friends in the army and his family was in danger back home, it was very tough for him to go through all that by himself.

After finishing his service George found himself back at the starting point, not knowing what to do and where to head. Despite everything, he refused to give up and decided to follow his passion for music and try to turn it into a career.

With a big dream and lots of plans, he applied for the Micro-Projects program to get the support he needed to start. Now George has a small studio in which he records and produces music for many local artists.

George is married and has worked in the carpentry profession since childhood with more than 40 years of experience, he had a full workshop with a kit, but because of the war he lost the workshop with the entire equipment, unfortunately, he cannot return to his former work area because its still under control of armed groups.

During war his home was exposed to a shell explosion, which led to great damage to the house, as a result, the family was displaced for more than 10 years. 

Because of his great experience in His profession and his desire to develop his business, George applied to the Micro Projects in order to buy a machine that helps him save time and increase his income, George launched his project and added new models to his work that helped him bring new customers, which led to an increase in his monthly profits.

The Micro Projects Program was able to achieve one of George's goals, to help him strive to work harder and develop faster. 

Elias is an example of the patient and strong father who faces life’s challenges for his family, Elias is married and has two sons, one of whom is serving in military, life challenged Elias differently at each stage, in the period of war he was displaced from his home, and his son was exposed to a war injury during his mandatory service time. 

Corona came to be one of the most difficult periods he went through; it kept him away from his work and family, but as Elias said:  "Our Mother Mary did not abandon me and helped me overcome this ordeal." Elias now works as a guard in a private school in Aleppo with a low salary, he wants to improve his income, so he decided to apply for a taxi, which he sees as a strong source in order to meet the requirements of life and his family's expenses.

At the end of the meeting Elias said that his dream is to be able to buy a taxi so he can be more financially independent, and he achieved this dream to be his first strong step in the face of life hardships.

The years of war were not easy for Fadi's family, however, it didn't stop them from pursuing their dreams of living in peace and stability. Fadi’s family suffered a lot during the war, especially in the first years as Fadi is a resident of the village of Al-Jadeeda in the Idlib countryside, which is one of the Christian villages in the city of Idlib. He was displaced with his family from the village after they were besieged by armed groups.

At the beginning of the war in 2011, Fadi volunteered to defend his land against the armed groups, then He was discharged from the army in 2021 after serving for ten years.

Before the war, Fadi worked in the aluminum craft in his village. He had a shop since 2004, but he lost it afyer leaving the village towards Kasab. In his last years of service, he worked in this profession during his spare hours intending to return to it after service..

After his discharge, he moved to Aleppo to settle there and began working in the aluminum field, but his income was not enough to secure the family’s needs, and he strived hard to start his project to secure a sufficient source of income for his family.

The Micro Projects Program was able to fulfill this family's dream of stability, and Fadi now has his own shop, which will enable him to provide a decent life for his family.

Elias is a strong man who defied the difficulties of life for the sake of his family’s happiness despite all the harsh circumstances he went through. 

Elias is married and has three children, he suffered a lot during the war; he had a taxi in 2014, but unfortunately it was destroyed by a shell in 2016, despite the difficulty of the situation he was able to overcome this incident for the sake of his children and started working as a driver for a local institution with a modest salary.

Elias held-on to hope, his many losses during the war did not disappoint him, and despite the suffering of life, he was not satisfied with his little income, he kept searching for an opportunity to improve his situation and a ray of hope that would change his life; for him it was a taxi that he would work on after his shift to help him secure a better income, Elias applied for micro projects and upon approval his joy was indescribable. Today Elias looks forward to starting a new life chapter full of hope and blessings.

Naeem is an example of strong personality who will face crises with positive adaptation without suppression or confusion, married and has two sons, he works in the field of sanitary installations, solar energy installation and electricity extension.

Naeem tried to develop himself in his domain of work despite all the difficulties and challenges he faced, he is a creative person who added with his experience of more than 15 years working in the field of central heating, he rented a shop in order to start a stable life and a small family. 

Despite many difficulties and the war that hit Aleppo, Naeem did not leave the city and remained working hard to secure a good future for his children, his house was damaged by the earthquake and he did not despair and was able to restore it.

Naeem applied for the necessary equipment which will help him increase his income and secure the needs of his family. He believes that everything will turn out for the best, and that tomorrow is more beautiful, Hopefully this project will be the beginning of beautiful days for him and his family.

Dr. Ghassan have been working in the clinic for more than 30 years, he has extensive experience in the field of dentistry, his work was greatly affected during the war because his place was exposed to a lot of shells, and when the area became safe, he decided to develop his clinic's devices because the equipment was worn-out that it became dilapidated.

The earthquake destroyed all Ghassan’s dreams for the enhancement of his clinic and his house from which he and his family were able to get out safe and sound, and because life must go on, Ghassan decided to submit an application in order to develop his project with support from the Micro Projects.

Ghassan held-on to hope despite all the difficulties of life that he faced in the past, the strength that he possesses despite all the challenges and crises that he went through, his patience and will can overcome every painful hardship.

Dr. Ghassan launched his project with the new devices that helped him develop the clinic and achieve part of his dreams that he patiently longed for. 

Shant is a passionate person, aspiring to be proficient in his work, self-reliant, in order to secure a decent life for his family; Shant is married and a father of two, he works day and night for the wellness of his family.

Shant works in the profession of car spraying, and has extensive experience in this field, he currently works in a workshop but the equipment is not his, and the wage he receives is not commensurate with his experience and insufficient for the requirements of life.

During war people are exposed to many material and physical losses, this period was difficult for Shant, he lost his shop and equipment. His mother, father and sister were injured in the war, Shant wants to be independent in his work, so the idea of applying for his own project through the Micro Projects Support was a ray of hope, Shant started his project and is now working with passion and enthusiasm in order to achieve his life goals and take good care of his loving family.

Hanaa Hakeem lives with her sister in Aleppo. In addition to taking care of her sister and the house, she also works as a teacher in a public school in the city of Aleppo to support her husband.

During the war in Aleppo Hanaa and her family refused to leave their home and their memories behind and decided to stay no matter what.

By the end of the war, the Hakeem family faced a difficult financial situation with low income and high rates of inflation, which made Hanaa take a new step in the field of makeup and nail-care to help with the family’s income; she took plenty of make-up courses and started learning how to do nails in a nail salon. After a short time, Hanaa made her own customers and started making money out of her new passion. 

But that wasn’t enough for her, she wanted to grow her business and increase the number of customers which wasn’t easy to accomplish by herself, that’s why she applied to the Micro-Project program.

After getting the support she needed, she was able to get a new nail kit and became independent in her own work.

Nihad Ghazal is a 65-year-old with a passion for baking and making pastry since her childhood; she used to make all different types of pastries and give them to her friends at school to try.

As she grew older her love for pastry grew bigger, she used to help her mother with cooking and doing kitchen chores, that’s how she learned her mother’s baking recipes, her secrets and tricks for a perfect bake.

The Ghazal sisters suffered from the war, but unlike many, they stayed in their house refusing to leave the memories they have in Aleppo.

Despite the lack of power, gas, and clean water, Nihad always managed to find a way to practice her love for baking. In the middle of the war with all the bakeries closed she had the idea to do what she loves and sell what she bakes targeting the neighborhood she lived in.

Now by having the support from Micro-Project, Nihad is now capable of growing her business and increasing her income doing the one thing she loves the most.

Carla Ishak is an ambitious dentist who recently graduated from Aleppo university, being a dentist was her long-lasting dream. When she was a little girl, she used to go to her father’s clinic to watch him at his job while pretending to be his assistant.

Going through the war in Syria was harsh for Carla and her family, as they had to evacuate their home due to several bombings. The prolonged fights and the damage it caused forced the family to move to the grandparents’ and even though the fight was halted, the financial hardships prevented them from rehabilitating their house and kept them from going back.

Carla began practicing dentistry right after her graduation with her father’s support in making her dream come true. Once she cultivated her skills, she decided to take another step towards her big dream and open her own practice.

By applying for micro-project, she had the awaited opportunity to a fresh start in her career after getting engaged to the love of her life.

Now dr. Carla is living her life dream; treating patients, making people smile and also helping her family to move back to their home.

Fania's life took an unexpected turn when her husband, Bassam, fell ill, leaving him unable to provide for their family. With a studying son to support, her mother-in-law, and her husband's health deteriorating, Fania knew she had to act fast. 

Determined to secure a future for her family, she seized the opportunity presented by their small shop. With hope, She applied for assistance from the Micro Projects Program, seeking support to stock shelves, buy a refrigerator, and purchase goods to transform the shop into a mini-market and dairy shop, envisioning a lifeline for her family.

Her shop flourished and Bassam will find solace in being able to contribute as much as possible. 

Through her microproject and the support of the program, Fania not only sustained her family's livelihood, but also inspired others with her resilience in the face of hardships.

“It all started with a video on YouTube”, this is how Samar Alzawahra explained her passion for her work. She is an English teacher who was living with her mother and siblings in Daraa governorate until 2016 when violent incidents increased in the city and they faced daily threats, so they decided to move to Damascus and rented a small flat in ALdwalaa.

She was transferred to a school in Damascus and continued her work as a teacher and was trying her best to support her family with the livelihood demands especially since her father was deceased, her mother was old and sick and her brother suffered from Down's syndrome.

However, deep inside Samar had this interest in art; so one day she was watching videos on YouTube about Epoxy art piece making and loved the idea so she kept watching these videos, then she decided to try making these pieces herself with the help of a friend and succeeded in making beautiful pieces that everybody loved.

During that very year, Samar made many epoxy pieces, managed to participate in galleries, and started to get customers. At this point, she felt that the work became bigger than her modest ability because her tools were simple and not proper for such orders.

After getting support from Hope Center, Samar was so grateful because she is now able to expand her work and get more orders which will lead to improving her income and her living conditions on the long term. 

At a young age, Farhan Maher had to face great responsibilities as his father was exposed to a bus accident that left him paralyzed so he became the man of the house and responsible for his sisters, his mother, and his disabled father.

As a result, he had to work after school to afford the living expenses and after he graduated from the Financial and Banking Institute, he started to work as a mobile phone maintenance worker. Soon after he was able to save money and start his maintenance center in partnership with his friend in Damascus but things didn’t go as well as expected due to the increasing prices and high rent, so he returned to maintenance work at a mobile phone store in Jaramana. 

Farhan wasn’t satisfied with the low percentage he was gaining from work because it wasn’t enough to cover the high costs of living or his father’s medication and was seeking any chance to have his own project so when he learned about the Micro Project program in Damascus, he didn’t hesitate to apply for support.

Considering his long experience in Maintenance and his strong will and determination, Farhan was supported with maintenance tools and materials in addition to some accessories to have his own center in Jaramana with all hope that this project will help stabilize his financial condition and make him able to take care of his family’s demands.

In a small humid basement, Yazan, his mother, sister, and his brother’s family were living and working together, struggling to afford their daily food under very difficult circumstances. 

Yazan started to work from a young age at a Barbershop trying to learn a career and secure his living at the same time, but in 2012 he was called for military service which lasted for nine hard years far from his family and unable to support them during the severe years of war.

However, in 2021 Yazan was discharged and returned home to find out that the financial condition of his family was extremely bad and that his mother had to work as a cleaner to afford the living demands.

He felt bad and started immediately to work and support his family but the low income he got wasn't sufficient to meet the increasing costs of living making Yazan and his family struggle financially. 

“Having this project is priceless for me because I am able now to work hard to increase my income so that my mom can rest”, With these words, Yazan expressed his gratitude for having support from the micro project center to have his own Barbershop. Hopefully, this young man will have a better income to improve his living conditions and preserve his dignity. 

Kinda was living with her family and her mother in Harasta town in the countryside of Damascus where she worked as a teacher and in the afternoons at a sewing workshop with her mother while her husband was working as a goldsmith. Kinda and her family were living in comfort and security until the beginning of the Syrian war which turned their life upside down.

At the very beginning of the war, Harasta town was surrounded by armed forces and soon they captured the city and terrified the citizens including Kinda and her family who were trapped in the house for five days until they managed to flee with only their clothes.

Kinda lost a lot during the incidents including her house, and her sewing workshop, and her husband lost his goldsmith workshop in addition to six kilos of gold but they were thanking God for their survival and didn’t mind starting from scratch in a different place and under difficult circumstances.

Through her strong determination, Kinda was able to start a small workshop from the house and at the same time was giving private English lessons to kids while her husband worked at a café shop and both were trying their best to afford the living demands without needing anyone's help, but with the continuous electricity cuts, Kinda endeavors to work more hours and increase her income seemed to be impossible.

With the help of Hope Center, Kinda was supported to purchase a lithium battery that will enable her to work more than eight hours daily which will enable her to get more orders from customers leading to improving her income and her living conditions on the long term.

From a close-knit family, Bassel Alkholy was raised to become a determined young man who started working at a young age to support himself and his family.

He used to live with his family in Al-Zabadani area in the countryside of Damascus and after turning 18, he started to work with his brothers as a plumber in the same area and at the same time enrolled at the faculty of law dreaming of becoming a lawyer in the future.

However, during wartime, the area was affected badly by the armed groups' attacks which left most of its houses in ruins including Bassel’s, and as a result, he and his family were forced to leave their hometown and move to Damascus to start from scratch with no house, work or money.

Unfortunately, his father's heart was too weak to handle all those losses so he passed away in 2013 leaving his family grieving their great loss. Soon after, Bassel was called for the reserve military service where he spent three fateful years and was discharged as a result of an injury in the head and belly.

Bassel went back home with the same determination to work and handle his living expenses so he worked again with his brothers but the income was too little to be divided and Basel was in dire need of starting his own project as he was responsible for his sick mother and his sister.

After applying at the Micro project center, Bassel was supported to have the plumping equipment needed to be independent and have his own source of income hoping that this project would help in securing a decent livelihood for him and his family. 

The ten years of military service that Yazan spent, made his life empty of any experiences or certificates, yet, he didn’t hesitate after his discharge in 2021 to start working as a delivery boy at a restaurant to afford his living and support his sick mother.

Yazan Basha is a 31-year-old man, single, lives with his mother in a small flat in Jaramana, his parents are separated and his older siblings are married which made Yazan hold the responsibility from a young age but he had no time to work or gain any experience because he was called for military service and the only thing that he gained from the service other than facing death or fear is how to drive as he was a vehicle driver for his ten years of service.

However, in the past two years, Yazan has been doing his best to afford the livelihood demands but his mother was battling cancer which burdened him with the high cost of treatment and daily medicine.

With his great faith and determination, Yazan applied for the pick-up car project benefiting from his driving experience and planning to work on delivering products to shops and markets, and his request was approved as he was supported to purchase a pick-up car with all hope that this project will help Yazan to improve his living conditions and afford his mother's medication demands.

Sleiman Alzeidan is 36 and lives alone in a rented room in Jaramana, his parents were divorced when he was a child and he lived for a long period of his life as a lonely boy with no support.

Sleiman learned how to work and depend on himself to handle his living expenses so he started working at a goldsmith workshop at a young age. However, during wartime, this career became unprofitable like before so he worked as a private driver taking passengers to Lebanon but due to the border’s closure as a result of the coronavirus epidemic, his work also stopped.

Sleiman didn’t accept to stay jobless and decided to work as a taxi driver, and in his spare time, he worked at a laser cutting workshop to afford his living and was always seeking to have better income hoping that in the future he could be able to get married and have the family he was deprived of.

Unfortunately, this simple dream was getting far day after day because of the increasing costs of living, making it hard for Sleiman to afford his daily food without being able to save for the future.

Sleiman was grateful after having the support from Hope Center to purchase his taxi because he found out that he is not alone in this cruel world and that this opportunity he got would be a huge step to providing him with a sustainable source of income that will improve his living and help him to establish his own family.

Based on some simple tools, Johnny Gibran was able to work for many years in the field of mobile phones' maintenance, a skill he gained after working as a maintenance worker in his beginnings. During that period, he was able to learn the profession and take on the full work in return for a monthly salary through which he could cover the costs of daily life and take care of the household expenses, especially since his parents were old and he was the breadwinner for the family

Johnny was working hard, trying to provide a decent living for his parents, and seeking at the same time to save some money to start his own project but the income he made was barely enough to secure the daily food, and like any young man his age, he was striving hard, trying to secure an opportunity to build his future.

After visiting The Micro Projects program, Johnny was supported to purchase the necessary tools and maintenance supplies so that he could start his own maintenance workshop. Hopefully, this project would be a new beginning in Johnny’s life that would help him to be independent in his work and able to secure a better living for himself and his family.

Michel has always been a hardworking young man who strives to be self-reliant and works hard to support his family, which consists of loving parents, a brother, and a sister.

He is 27 and lives with his family in an old house in the Al-Dwalaa neighborhood, in Damascus. 

Michel began his working life at an early age as he used to work after school in a barbershop until he learned the profession well.

Once he was in his twenties, he decided to become independent so he started a barber shop in the neighborhood where he was living and despite the simple tools, his work started to grow and he had many customers from the neighborhood. However, after a period, Michel discovered that he suffered from Aortic Valve insufficiency and needed to undergo heart surgery to survive.

Indeed, with the help of several church associations, Michel was able to undergo the operation, which was successful, but unfortunately, he was no longer able to perform his daily activities normally, especially since his work requires standing and bending for long hours, which was very difficult for him.

This self-made young man preferred to endure the fatigue of work rather than remain unemployed or reliant on others, and he visited the Micro Project Center and applied for support to purchase a hydraulic barber chair that would make it easier for him to continue in his work.

Today, Michel is so grateful because he is able to keep working without making extra effort that might affect his health condition, and at the same time he is still effective and able to handle his own living. 

Being the head of a family and the father of three kids and finding yourself unable to feed them or provide a decent living is a very hard feeling and may sometimes lead to despair, as in the case of Louay Thabet, 29, married and has Sarkis, Michel, and Fadi.

Louay was working as a pick-up driver in the town of Maaloula where he was living with his family, but after the start of the war, Maaloula was exposed to many dangers and destruction. As a result, the family lost their house, which was destroyed, and had to sell the pick-up car so that they could handle the costs of moving from their town to Jaramana.

After a short period, Louay was called for military service during which he got married and moved to live with his wife at his in-law’s house, soon after, he was injured by shrapnel in his foot and was discharged.

Louay tried to work and afford his family’s living but due to his condition, he was unable to regain his normal life or practice any job so he started working as a taxi driver so that he could secure the household expenses and meet the needs of his three children which was very difficult with the increasing prices and the high rent of the taxi.

With the help of Hope Center, Louay was supported to purchase his own taxi which is a suitable project for his condition and the opportunity he was looking for to provide him with a sustainable source of income and preserve his dignity. 

Somer has always been passionate about the hairdressing profession, and ever since he finished his baccalaureate, he began to work for experienced hairdressers in order to learn the profession so that he could have his own salon in the future and become self-dependent without relying on anyone, especially since his father used to work as a tiler and due to his health condition, was no longer able to carry out strenuous work so the greatest burden of providing the household expenses fell on Sumer and his brother.

In 2011, Somer was called for military service, and like many young men his age, he remained in the reserve service until 2020, during which he endured the horrors of war and lost everything he had saved from his previous work. When he was discharged and wanted to start again, the economic condition of the country was very bad and he did not have the fund to start his project, so he returned to working at a salon with a monthly salary that was barely enough to cover the expenses of daily life.

Somer's only hope to have start own business was to get support and with the help of the Hope Center, he was able to purchase the tools and equipment that enabled him to establish his hairdressing salon using a room of his house. Somer was grateful because this support was a chance to be independent and help improve his living conditions.

Lilian Abou Nemer has always been a self-dependent woman who didn’t accept desperation in her life as she insisted on working hard in order to support herself and her kids without needing anyone’s help. 

She used to live with her husband and kids in Heineh village but unfortunately, she wasn’t in a good relationship with her husband so she started to work as a school teacher and support herself then she learned the nail care profession and when she became unable to tolerate the bad treatment from her husband, she asked for a divorce and moved with her kids to Damascus where she rented two rooms in an Arabic old house and started to work as a nail beauty artist in different centers depending on the percentage she was taking to afford the living expenses.

Despite the difficulties of being a woman responsible for three kids within the current circumstances, Lilian was struggling to provide a decent livelihood and good education to her kids, the tools she was using weren’t sufficient to increase her work and have a good income.

With the help of Hope Center, Lilian got the support required to buy all the tools and materials to establish her nail care center hoping that this project will help her to have a sustainable source of income and preserve her dignity.