*If unsure about donating and want to confirm this is a real family in Gaza right now, please feel free to reach out to Mohammed to confirm or offer support and encouragement.

Connect with Mohammed via instagram messenger or video call @mohmmedshehada5

My name is Mohammed Shehada, and I come from Gaza.

Before the war, I had a home, a car, and a construction business my family built from the ground up. Life was simple, but it was filled with dignity. We had cats, chickens, ducks, geese, and sparrows along with gardens and fruit trees for growing our own food. We worked hard and cherished everything we had. Today, everything I once had is gone.

On October 9, 2023 my life changed forever. My house was turned to rubble. My car burned. My company—my only source of income—destroyed. All of our beloved pets have been killed. We have had to leave everything we worked for to try and survive in an unimaginable place of destruction.

I now live in a small, torn tent with nine other members of my family. We have been displaced more than ten times, constantly fleeing bombings and airstrikes in search of safety that never lasts. The tent barely shields us from the unbearable summer heat or the bitter cold of night.

My parents are elderly and sick. My brother and sister live with us. My other sister is here with her husband and three small children. My nieces and nephew are ages 10, 8, and 7. Every day is a struggle for survival. We often go without food or clean water. Disease spreads easily. Medical care is nearly impossible to find. There is no work to support my family. There is no peace. Only fear, hunger, and despair.

My nieces and nephew cry themselves to sleep, afraid of the sounds of drones and bombs. We try to comfort them, but we ourselves are broken. We are alive, but barely. We feel invisible. Forgotten.

I’m not asking for luxury. I’m asking for a chance to live with dignity again. A safe place. Food. Medicine. Hope.

Any funds donated are sent to the organizer and then transferred to our family. Funds are used for essential items such as food and supplies.

Please, if you can help, even a little—it could mean everything to us.

From the bottom of our hearts, thank you.

Before the war my day was filled with working to support my family and caring for the animals and land that I loved.

Now everyday is about surviving the violence that is all around

We see the world taking a stand for us and thank you. From my family to yours thank you for reading my story.

-Mohammed