MEET FAYCAL

” My name is Omar[1] and I am a father of three, two boys and a girl. The neighborhood we were living in was heavily targeted and attacked during the war, and we lost our house. But the hardest thing ever was losing our oldest son Ameer in the attacks. Like so many other families, ours really struggled to survive after that. We had to escape to another part of the country.

The area we had to move to was not completely safe either and occasionally targeted by armed groups but we had no other option. A friend of mine allowed me to rent a house for a decent price but things were still getting harder and harder for all of us. The “bad luck” continued to cross our way. One day I was on my way home when a sudden explosion took place. I was injured in the head and neck and became paralyzed. My wife Arwa[2] used to work in a factory but it closed. She then worked as a house cleaner but she couldn’t provide for all our family’s needs and basic daily necessities.

Our situation was severely deteriorating. There were times we did not even have bread to eat and were completely relying on our neighbors’ generosity.

Our 11-year-old son Fayçal[3], even very young, felt responsible of us because he was well aware that I was disabled and that his mother was really exhausted. So he suggested to leave school to find a job. He then started working in a car wash and repair store.

Our partner in the area met Fayçal at the car wash many times and felt he could not turn a blind eye to his situation. So he visited us and witnessed our very poor living condition. The church then started helping us with food parcels on a monthly basis, as well as providing us with blankets and warm clothes for the winter. The help they are providing us with is really life transforming. It drastically improved our situation and took off the burden of Fayçal’s shoulders. Thanks to this assistance and to the help of the church leader, Fayçal is now back in school, as he should be!

It broke my heart to see my only son sad and desperate. He worked hard to help us. We had no choice or else we would be in streets. Thanks to your help we stood on our feet again and the most important thing is that Fayçal will continue his study and live a normal childhood. Thank you for bringing the smile back to his precious face!

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[1] [2] [3] Pseudonyms used