Help Yousef and His Family Survive and Escape Gaza

Hello, my name is Jessica Abou Zeki, and I am organizing this fundraiser on behalf of my dear friend Yousef from Gaza.

This is a heartfelt plea to help him and his family survive the unthinkable.

They are 12 people — displaced, starving, and without access to medicine or basic needs.

Your support will go directly to securing food, clean water, and urgent medical supplies.

Their ultimate goal is evacuation, but right now, their most urgent battle is simply staying alive.

Please take a moment to read their story, share it, and help however you can.

Don’t let us die from hunger and fear.

We are not asking for miracles — just a chance to live.

My name is Yousef, a telecommunications engineer from Gaza, and I come from a family of twelve. Today, we are alive, but we have lost everything else.

An airstrike destroyed our three-story home and the supermarket owned by my father, burying all our belongings — memories, clothes, food, and even official documents — beneath the rubble. After the strike, bulldozers cleared the debris, erasing every trace of our home and past. Miraculously, we survived — but survival is only the beginning.

We are now homeless, displaced, and struggling to survive each day.

There is no food, no clean water, no medicine, and no safe shelter.

We are physically and mentally exhausted, living in constant terror — not just of bombs, but of hunger, thirst, and disease.

Gaza offers no refuge anymore. Our only hope is evacuation — to escape, to survive, and to rebuild a safe future.

My beloved parents, Talal (63) and Siham (54), are battling relentless bombardments, illnesses, and severe malnutrition.

My father, now retired, dreamed of building a home that would hold his children and grandchildren together. My mother dreamed of a kitchen filled with love, where she could cook healthy meals and treats for the grandchildren she has longed for her entire life.

My heart breaks even more knowing she recently lost her own mother, who succumbed to hunger and cold — a loss we could not prevent.

My brother Mohammad, his wife Ghada, and their two young children — Omar (2 years) and Talal (5 months, born during the war’s first week) — are fighting to stay alive under constant threats. A stray bullet passed by baby Omar while he was asleep.

My brother Ahmad, his wife Huda, and their son Moath (2 years) have endured immense hardships. Their neighborhood in Hamad City was targeted. It shatters my heart that the place where Moath once played is no longer safe. One night, a rocket struck the displacement tent where he was sleeping, waking him in terror.

My brothers Galal (26), Weam (22), and I (29) face the same harsh reality. We are overwhelmed by a war with no end in sight, a future filled with blood, displacement, and death.

Prices for basic goods have skyrocketed — An egg dish containing 30 eggs costs 70 to 80 euros instead of 2, baby diapers 80 euros per pack instead of 6, and onions are now sold by the piece — if you can even find one.

Please, if you’re reading this, don’t look away.

Help us survive this.

Witnessing my family’s suffering is unbearable. Since the war began, we have been fleeing from place to place in search of safety. Our knees ache from constant movement and carrying heavy bags. My 40-day-old nephew Talal suffered a head injury from a rocket fragment. My nephews have gone over 200 days without eggs, apples, or milk and are severely malnourished. Their parents cannot afford diapers or even toys to distract them from the sounds of bombing. There is no medicine, no proper shelter, no work, and no money to buy the scarce goods left in Gaza.

Your donation will provide urgent food, clean water, medical supplies, hygiene products, and help cover evacuation costs, passports, and travel arrangements. Even $5 can save lives. And if you cannot donate, please share our story — every voice matters.

This is not a story; it is our harsh reality, endured for more than 653 days. Yet we still hold on to dreams, ambitions, and the love that binds us.

Thank you for reading and for your compassion. Your generosity can bring hope to my family’s darkest days.

yousef.