Family of nine struggling with building expenses

Family of nine struggling with building expenses

My name is Jessica. I have known Ali since 2016. He is kind, ambitious, humble, full of faith, and a good friend. Ali is Palestinian and lives in the West Bank. Full name and photos are being withheld for the safety of the family.

Recently, Ali shared with me the story of how his father, a former carpenter named Hussein, became unemployed. Twenty-three years ago, he was passing through the checkpoint between Bethlehem City and Jerusalem, on his way to work. Unknown to him, there was a violent incident in Jerusalem on that day and the Israeli soldiers operating the checkpoint detained him. They were aggressive, kicking Hussein and hitting him on the head. Hussein returned home but had sustained severe head trauma. In the years after, he began to struggle with symptoms of mental illness and was diagnosed with schizophrenia due to traumatic brain injury.

Due to this, Hussein has been unable to work his trade as a carpenter, and his family has struggled with expenses of daily living in the difficult economic and social conditions of life in the West Bank. The situation is exacerbated now by the war, leaving them without jobs or sources of income.

For years, the family has wanted to build an additional room onto their small home, as currently the family of nine has one bedroom that they all share. I am sharing photos of the room as well as the outside area where they would like to build a room. They estimate the cost of construction at about $8,000, but are hoping to raise what they can. Anything helps, if you can donate or just share the campaign. Ali and his family are very deserving and are so grateful for any assistance! Thank you for your compassion and generosity!