Lebanon, hope and reciprocity

The explosion in the port of Beirut shocked a city and country that was already going through a major economic crisis. We wanted to commit ourselves first and foremost to restoring confidence and hope and ensuring that the numerous supporters from all over the world who have responded to our appeal feel close to us.

Within just a few months of launching the emergency appeal for Beirut we have already managed to repair many families’ homes and shops before winter sets in. “Thanks to the help we received, Dad who is 91 years old, and I were able to put the house back in order and repair the windows and doors just in time, two days before the rain,” Maria told us.

Reciprocity is the characteristic feature of the numerous experiences of love in action we have heard about during this period: in fact, support has not only come from our fundraising efforts, but those same Lebanese people took action to support others within their community who had suffered even worse damage or who were living in more precarious situations.

Marlene told us that in addition to the presence and support received from members of Humanité Nouvelle which is in charge of managing operations at a local level, she also received support from other neighbours:

“They offered me French windows and lampshades early on they didn’t need which really helped me to manage the situation. I was then able to restore electrical power to the apartment. The damage sustained to the balcony roofs, however, still needed to be repaired. I asked a friend to quote for the repair work but I couldn’t afford it so he said to me: “Providence will come and you can pay me when it does. I can afford to wait a bit”. It was really because of the support I received that I was able to pay for most of the work”.

Repairing homes and making sure that people have decent living conditions is only part of our commitment. Accompanying those who have experienced trauma and such enormous and unexpected material losses also means trying to rebuild confidence in themselves and in the community by making them feel that they are not alone.