Despite her knee condition and the strain of her modest job, Firyal never faltered in her commitment to support her family. Living in a rented house in Qattinah village with her husband and two children, every penny counted.

Her dream of owning a business seemed distant until she heard of the Micro Projects Program. With the support, she finally opened her own cleaning and wrapping materials shop. This venture empowered her to contribute more substantially to her family's financial stability.

Now, Firyal's days are filled with purpose as she manages her shop, supporting her husband and securing a good life for her children. This shop isn't just a business; it's a symbol of hope and opportunity, allowing her to transform her family's circumstances and create a path to prosperity against all odds.

Fadila, a married woman and mother of four, lives with her family in Qattinah village. Her husband works tirelessly as an employee and a farmer to meet the family's needs. However, one source of income isn’t enough. Since 2018, Fadila has been running a dress leasing shop and working as a school teacher to contribute to their income.

She buys second-hand dresses and fixes them at a local sewing workshop before leasing them to women in her village. She dreamed of having her own sewing machines to repair dresses, as her manual machine is impractical. Owning the necessary sewing machines would allow her to work year-round, improving her business efficiency.

To make this dream a reality, Fadila applied to the Micro Projects Program for support as she plans to set up her own sewing business within her shop which would enable her to fix dresses, save time and increase her earnings. 

Securing better income through her shop would provide greater financial stability for the family, ensuring they can meet their needs and invest in their children's education.

Rasha is a single mother residing in Al-Sabeel neighborhood, she has been the sole caregiver for her ten-year-old son, Majd, who suffers from Children's asthma and Thalassemia. After splitting up with her husband, she took on the responsibility of providing for Majd's needs, including the costs of his treatments.

Since 2017, she has worked tirelessly in sales and at a beauty salon, but her modest earnings were barely enough to cover their living expenses and Majd's medical bills. Despite her brother's occasional support, Rasha knew she needed a more sustainable solution to ensure a better future for her son.

Determined to become financially independent and provide her only son with stability, she envisioned starting her own mini-market. However, the cost of launching such a business was beyond her means. That's when the Micro Projects Program in Homs stepped in, providing the necessary support to turn her dream into reality.

With the program's assistance, Rasha successfully opened her mini-market. This new venture not only improved their financial situation but also gave Rasha the independence she longed for. Eventually, Rasha remarried a man who embraced both her and Majd, offering a partnership built on mutual care and love.

Today, she looks forward to the future, leaving behind the struggles of the past and focusing on the promising opportunities ahead for her and her son.

Hanaa, a dedicated mother of six, resides in Qattinah village with her retired husband and four children, who are university and school students. Despite working in the health sector for over 30 years, her salary, combined with her husband's modest pension, was insufficient to meet their family's daily needs and cover the high costs of education.

Determined to improve her family's livelihood, Hanaa decided to start her own business; she opened a dairy shop, leveraging her skills in preparing dairy products and recognizing the high demand for these goods in her village. With the help of the Micro Projects Program, she launched her small business, with her husband supporting her in managing the shop.

This initiative transformed the family's life, providing a secure source of income and easing the financial burden. Her dairy shop not only supports her children's education but also ensures a stable future for her family. 

Nassrallah, a retired employee from Qattinah village, found himself grappling with financial strains despite his and his wife's pensions. With two sons to support; one in university and the other fulfilling military duty, his income as a farmer became indispensable. To alleviate some of the mounting costs, he sold his cherished land to his brother, but agreed to continue working on it.

The land, now under his brother's ownership, is rich with fruitful trees and seasonal crops. However, the expenses of agricultural activities, particularly the increasing fees for tractor rentals and other necessary equipment like spraying pumps, became daunting challenges for Nassrallah.

Despite the hurdles, he remains determined to persevere. Acquiring a mini-cultivator and a spraying pump, offers a glimmer of hope. With these tools, Nassrallah envisions a more manageable path ahead, one where he can sustain his livelihood and, perhaps, improve his family's prospects in the future. 

War calamities were tough on everyone, especially those who are still suffering from its impact till now like the case of Mikhael Kousa who was exposed to a shell explosion during his service in Jobar, his entire body was penetrated by the shell’s shrapnel which put him in critical condition as he had to undergo several medical surgeries to survive, but he didn't recover completely which prevented him from living normally or working.

However, when Mikhael was discharged from the service, he tried to take any available job to afford the livelihood demands so he worked washing dishes at a restaurant and tried to work as a taxi driver but he wasn’t able to pay the high taxi rent and working as a dishwasher became tiring for him and the income was very low.

Mikhael became desperate because during the last few months, he and his family were living on support from his family and in-laws and he was in need of having his own source of income, especially after having a newborn baby.

With the help of Hope Center, Mikhael was supported to purchase his own taxi because it was the only project suitable for his health condition and that will form a great opportunity for him to be independent and have a sustainable source of income to improve his living.

Bassem Al-Mousa is 31 unmarried young man who used to live with his family in their small village. His father was blind and unable to work due to his condition, while his two siblings suffered from Joint Erosion and needed a lot of treatment, which forced Bassem at a young age to start working. At first, he worked at a prosthodontic laboratory then began working as a farmer cultivating the land and selling the crops trying to support his family and provide them with a decent life. However, the war quickly overpowered his efforts as he was called for military service, and for the next ten years, he knew nothing but dangers, as his service was in the most severe locations such as Aleppo, Barzeh, and Qaboun.

During those ten years, his family’s situation was greatly affected, as their village was in direct contact with the fights, so they were forced to flee to Damascus and live in a small house in the Al-Dwalaa area, relying on aid from churches and associations.

In 2021, Bassem was discharged from military service, and during that period, his father was diagnosed with skin cancer so Bassem didn’t hesitate to spend the entire amount of the service allowance on his father’s treatment. After that, he returned to working in agriculture and transporting crops from the village to the city, bearing all the possible risks in order to extricate his family from the miserable situation in which they lived.

Despite all the tragedies that Bassem experienced, he was full of faith and hope, and this led him to apply for the pickup car project at the Micro Project Center in Damascus as he was supported to obtain his own pickup car, through which he transported vegetables and goods between the city and the village, which saved him effort and provided him with a better source of income. Hopefully, this project will be an opportunity to improve Bassem's financial situation and help him secure the best means of life for his family.

For a thalassemia patient, Najeeb was full of energy and determination to live like any normal person.

He is 30 years old and lives in an old house in Al-Tabala neighborhood. After he graduated from the agricultural institute in 2013, he volunteered at the SSSD association as a part-time job, then in 2016, he volunteered with the Al-Safina Association for People with Special Needs at the paper recycling center, he also worked as a painting worker at the weekends trying his best to secure a good income.

Despite his health condition, which requires a lot of care and rest, Najeeb did not hesitate to take up a lot of work in order to be self-reliant and afford his living expenses in addition to his medication costs which he was taking daily to stay alive.

As time passed, working at painting workshops started to affect his health condition so he worked as a rented taxi driver which was suitable for his health condition but the income wasn’t enough because he had to pay high percentage to the car owner.

Najeeb was full of optimism when he applied for the taxi project at the Micro-project Center in Damascus.

With the help of Hope Center, Najeeb was supported to purchase his own taxi which was the best project that suited his condition and at the same time provided him with a decent income to preserve his living.

George Bershan was one of the people who lost a lot during the war in Syria; not only his home and his job, but he also lost members of his family, which left him broken-hearted and sad.

George is 31, he used to live in a small village in the countryside of Aleppo and worked as an assistant bus driver on the international road. After the start of the war, their village was besieged by armed groups who started to spread killing and violence all over the area, so George and his family had no choice but to flee, leaving everything behind to preserve their lives. They moved to live in a rented house in the Kashkoul area in Damascus but the area was hit by daily shells and unfortunately, George’s sister was injured by one of them and passed away as a result. 

This incident has plunged the family into great sadness, especially George’s father, who was subsequently afflicted with cancer and died two years later.

George was burdened with sorrows and worries. He had become responsible for his mother and sister and had to protect them, especially during the severe security events in the region. So he decided to move to another place in search of safety. During that period, George worked as a sales representative for several companies. He also worked for a period as a private driver and as a minibus driver, trying his best to afford his family's expenses.

After George visited the micro-project center in Damascus and applied for the Mini-van, he was supported to purchase his own mini-van, because it would enable him to become self-reliant and have the ability to improve his income and provide his family with a decent living.

Sarkis Sadeq used to live with his family in Maaloula town, Damascus countryside, and was working with his brothers in their sweets shop which was the source of income for the entire family..

After the start of the war, as Maaloula town was one of the most affected places in Syria, and most of its residents were exposed to killing, kidnapping, and the destroying and looting of their houses, which forced Sarkis and his family to be displaced out of the country in 2012, as they took shelter in his in-laws’ house in Zahle, Lebanon.  Sarkis worked there in rock carving and installing until the economic and security conditions began to deteriorate in Lebanon, so Sarkis decided to return with his family to Syria and settle in Jaramana in Damascus countryside.

Sarkis lived with his family and mother-in-law, who was suffering with her health and taking medications constantly. During that period, his brothers decided to start their project again in the Kashkul area and they tried to work together like before, but unfortunately, the work was very little and the income was not enough to support them all, so Sarkis left work with his brothers and began to work as a bus driver.

He was working more than sixteen hours a day to afford his family’s living but things were getting harder and he was seeking to have his own project to improve his conditions.

“If it wasn’t for you, my situation would never have changed” These were Sarkis words upon being approved to be supported with the taxi project.

Hopefully, this taxi will help provide the family with a proper income to afford the livelihood demands and preserve their dignity.