During the crisis I was kidnapped, armed men took me to Edleb then I came out with a settlement. I was shot in the stomach and the Maristes helped me with the recovery costs, if it wasn’t for them I wouldn’t have been able to afford the costs, they also helped in my work-training which I took before applying for this initiative. My wife used to teach in a center but she was discriminated for being Christian and ended up being fired from there. She got a mobile phone as a gift from her sister in Germany but we had to sell it to get some money in these hard livelihood conditions. We never expected the war to last 8 years, one of our siblings who lives abroad sent us some money and we are still getting by with it until now; we’re waiting our first baby and that puts a lot of pressure on me as the family’s provider. I used to have a blacksmithing shop in Arkoub area which got robbed and the equipment was gone, that’s why I tried to work in the spare parts trade for cars. Then I started working in the carpeting business and it was good but I’m a skillful blacksmith with a degree and training in it, and I want to work again in my field of expertise. At the moment, my shop is filled with junk, the house we live in is rented, I paid the rent for the tenth month only then I don’t know what I’m going to do. I need equipment for my shop in order to work again. I’m not young anymore, I only have few years left to try and build a future for my child and my family. My main job is making iron tables and chairs, now since the business is flourishing again I feel that this project will be very helpful not only for me, but also for the workers and for the community.

I have worked in plumbing since 1992, I also worked as a blacksmith for a while but I got injured. Currently, I live with my wife, my daughter, my father and my mother-in-law and I’m the sole provider for the family. Earlier this year my mother passed away, she had a stroke and she was recovering from it in the village, her medicine was unavailable there so we called the doctor and he described another medicine which later turned on to be unfitted for her condition and led to complications and death. My father got robbed by armed men in Jdaydeh area, he is now unable to work due to cerebral ischemia. My mother in law lost her son as a martyr in the war, she had a house in Al Medan area that got burned and ruined and now she lives with us. She is bereaved and has no inner peace at all. My house was also in Al Medan area, fifth floor, we went through so much fear and stress during the time of war because of mortar shells and missiles that rained over the area, eventually we moved to Mhatet Baghdad and I put the house for rent. At the moment I live in my friend’s house. I suffer from a disc condition, I had a surgery that hasn’t been successful that’s why I need another one. My wrist is also broken and needs a splint; I don’t have the time or the money to have the surgery needed to fix it. During the crisis, my income dropped because my equipment was old and malfunctioning, which caused several losses for me. There are so many services that I can’t offer in my business due to the lack of the suitable equipment, I rented a shop to sell plumbing equipment trying to increase my income but the opposite happened because the rent was very high. Now I live day by day, my income isn’t equivalent with my family’s spending even with the helps I get. With this project I can start to have my life back together and help my family.

Before the crisis I used to work with my brothers in mobile-accessories, the business wasn’t so good we ended up with lots of debts so we shut down the shop and that was a huge loss. During war time I worked in a café cleaning tables and waitering, I even sold cookies on the streets; just to provide some money for my family, then I started to sell logs. I was displaced during the war with my family to Mashta al Helou and we lived there for 3 years, it was hard to adapt life in a new community and a very little income, I worked in the village in the same job of selling Manakish, I tried to go back to Aleppo but the situation was very dangerous, our area was ruined by bombs and missiles, that’s why I feared for my family and moved again to Marmaritta. We came back to Aleppo three months ago, and I don’t have anything to start with my practical life, I have to start all over from scratch. My wife used to work in house cleaning, she didn not use to work, because my son was a baby, now he’s older so she can help me to provide our expenses. Now I work in several jobs depending on the demand, and the Syriac Catholic are supporting me through the” family to family” initiative. This project is important for me to have some stability in my life after struggling for so long. Also, this area needs a place like this to revive it.

Adel is newly married (six months ago) he’s the provider of his wife and his parents. The shop was originally for shoe repairing, but the father suffered from cerebral ischemia and had a brain surgery which caused a trembling in his hands, thus he’s not able to work anymore. Adel had a place that he rented in Al-Medan area, for car repairing, but it was ruined and robbed and the equipment was gone, now he’s working in gas bottling. “I had to sell my car to get some money and get by after spending all my savings during the war time.” I used to have a taxi, it went missing in Bustan Al Basha area; I don’t know if it got ruined or stolen. He was too afraid to ask for a grant and be rejected if the cost is too high. “I’m happy that my father is doing well and that his health got better, which is enough to make me forget about my worries and sufferings.”

Life was not easy at all after Sahar’s husband death, who was the sole provider for the family when suddenly she found herself responsible for her two daughters Mary and Sarah.

Sahar made her decision to fight for the sake of her family and worked in making pastries for four years; this job was very difficult and tiring for a woman of Sahar’s age that forced her to think about another possible choice which provides her and her daughters with a dignified life.

Her husband had a small grocery shop that was completely stolen during the war, Sahar used this shop and opened it to sell wool with a little help from the church, and she also sold many hand-made pieces such as: scarves, hats and gloves. As a seasonal shop, Sahar also thought about selling cotton clothes during summer time in order not to stop working.

With the needed support, Sahar became able to provide her customers’ requests, and now she will ensure that her daughters have a good life with the stable income from her project.

Issam is an enthusiastic and energetic young man who lives with his parents and two sisters.

He works in his own Aluminum workshop that he opened in 2017 by borrowing some tools from his relative, this young man became well-known for his good reputation and his wide experience in this field among the other craftsmen.

Issam remembers very well his tough experience during the war which made of him a stronger person; In 2011, Issam and his father were kidnapped and the hardest thing they faced was witnessing the killing of a person in front of their eyes! they remained in captivity for 24 hours which were the longest and the most difficult hours in their life.

After this horrible incident, the family decided to flee seeking safety so they went to a village near Homs and stayed there for 6 years, through these years Issam worked in an Aluminum workshop and learned this profession very well.

When the situation improved in Homs city, they came back home and Issam started working immediately after he rented a workshop and hired a worker to help him.

The frequent electricity blackouts negatively affected his productivity. in addition to the need for some equipment that he was forced to rent from the other workshops which reflected of decrease in his profits.

With the help of Hope Center, Issam has the chance to improve his business and continue his career more successfully. 

Issam works in plumbing and solar system installation since 1984, he lives with his wife Lama, his son Fouad and his daughter Katia. The family went through many hardships during the war as they were living in Al-Hamidia which was a main battlefield back then, so they moved to a village called Mashta Al-Helou.

Issam didn’t stop working while staying in the village, but living away from home was not easy on the family, so when the situation became better in Homs Issam and his family decided to go back. Their house was robbed and Issam’s shop was empty too so they had to start over from scratch.

Issam is working now in his shop with minimum tools, but his income dropped due to the economic crisis which made him unable to buy all the equipment needed. All these hard circumstances affected his business and there were so many services that he couldn’t offer as a result to the lack of equipment and tools.

Today, Issam has all the equipment he needs to work properly and ensure a decent life for his family.

Wadih is a hairdresser who lives with his family of four; his wife Marilyn, his daughter Angy and his son George.

He learned this profession in Lebanon and he became famous for working with television presenters, Wadih went back to his city Homs and opened his own salon in 1996 which was one of the first salons in Al-Hamidia; his wife also helped in the salon for 16 years until the war forced him and his family to flee in 2012 to Mashta Al-Helou.

Leaving Homs was a very hard decision, but Wadih continued working in his field during that time among his clients' houses for almost a year, then he rented a salon for another year. In 2014, Al-Hamidia neighborhood became more safe; when Wadih heard this great news he hurried back with his family to their home where he helped in cleaning the streets and removing the ruins which the war had left behind, then he repaired his house and salon and started all over again.

Post-war results started to appear, most notably the economic crisis which affected Wadih's job and made him unable to provide some services to his clients. When Wadih has the sufficient support for his salon, it would improve his income and help him and his family to continue their life during these hard circumstances.