Hello, my name is Steve France. I'm a retiree living in the DC area. I'm raising funds for a family of three who are trapped in Gaza: Waseem Ayesh, his wife, Roa, and their son, Adam. My sister Linda Hartge is co-sponsoring this GFM. A Waseem GoFundMe last year funded his goal of getting a solar power system. But now the family is desperate to get out of Gaza, as he explains below:

My name is Waseem. Thank you for reading my story. I live in Gaza with my wife Roa and our four-year-old son Adam. Over the past two years, our lives have been defined by displacement, a painful struggle just to survive, and desperately clinging to the hope of finding safety and rebuilding our future together. Roa often says that what keeps us going are Adam’s small joys — his laughter, his curiosity, his little questions about everything, even when the world around us feels broken. She and I depend so much on his spirit; his smile brings warmth to even the hardest days. We’ve prayed unceasingly for his safety — not just his physical safety, but for his heart to stay innocent amid all this.

Amid this darkness, we’ve been blessed with friends, Steve and Linda — kind people who have helped with a GFM and encouraged us in many ways, including sending us photos of Linda's peaceful life on a farm, photos of flowers, animals, and the changing skies. The pictures and messages have brought light into our days. Adam’s reactions are always the most joyful; he points, laughs, and says, “Maybe one day we’ll see those trees for real.” Those moments, looking at the pictures together, remind us that beauty still exists in the world — and that we’re not forgotten.

But we can no longer remain in Gaza. (Thankfully, at this moment a tenuous ceasefire is in place. The two previous ceasefires failed. Even if this one holds, Gaza is totally destroyed, with little hope Israel will ever permit a rebuilding.)

Building Hope with Solar Power.

In November 2024, during our first displacement to southern Gaza, we launched a GoFundMe campaign with the help of Steve and Linda to start a small solar-powered printing business. Electricity in Gaza is unreliable, so this project allowed us to keep printers running, lower costs, and support our community.

With the funds raised, we successfully installed the solar system and began operating. For a time, it was a source of independence, stability, and connection — not only for us, but also for neighbors who came to charge their phones and stay in touch with loved ones during constant blackouts that Israel imposed.

Displacement and Collapse.

Our hope was short-lived. We were forced to leave our home in Gaza City multiple times due to bombings and military operations. After briefly returning to our destroyed home and neighborhood in northern Gaza in January 2025, we found that most of our customers had fled, and those who remained could no longer afford printing services. Thankfully, we were able to preserve our precious equipment.

We were displaced again to the south, and with the continuing destruction and scarcity, the printing business dried up.

Surviving Thanks to Kindness

Through this devastating time, a few very generous friends abroad became our lifeline. With their help, especially through cryptocurrency transfers that bypassed blockages and fees, we were able to buy food, warm clothes, and other essential items for our family. That support carried us through months of extreme hardship — times when humanitarian aid often didn’t reach us. Without it, we simply wouldn’t have made it this far.

The Family Vow & The Difficult Choice

During this time, I had some opportunities to leave Gaza alone, but we made a family vow: we would not separate, fearing we might never reunite.

Every day the dangers and hardships have increased. Bullets were falling on our house from helicopters and quadcopters, and there were bombings from F-16s on houses very close to us. We were afraid to leave the house to get our basic needs. We live dangerously close to active bombing zones. The sounds of bombs, missiles, planes, and drones have been a constant, terrifying presence. Civilian life collapsed — food is scarce, often in very bad condition, and extremely expensive. Medical care is nearly inaccessible, and movement is tightly restricted and very dangerous.

We are faced with a painful but clear truth: Gaza is unsafe and unhealthy for our family and we have little hope that it will be liveable for a long time.

Our Goal: Evacuation and Rebuilding

We have identified a possible pathway to evacuate Gaza together, but it is both expensive and complicated. We are working to raise the necessary funds to cover the evacuation costs and the first steps of rebuilding our lives in safety. The cost of being evacuated is set at $3,500 per person. Adding incidental and unexpected expenses, we estimate we will need $12,000 to reach safety.

Once we reach a safe place, I will immediately work to restart my digital marketing career, which was doing well before Israel's campaign against Gaza erupted. (Within a few weeks, the constant blackouts and Internet shutdowns eliminated all possibility of continuing this work.) I have maintained strong professional contacts with previous employers and companies abroad, which gives me confidence that I can secure work quickly. This would allow us not only to live with dignity but also to continue supporting our relatives who remain in Gaza.

Long-term, our dream is to return home when it is finally safe — to rebuild our lives, support our community, and be part of Gaza’s future.

Why Your Support Matters So Much

Your support can help us cross from deadly danger -- and an endless struggle just to survive -- to safety and a rebuilding of our lives. Every contribution brings us closer to evacuating together as a family, away from danger, and toward a life where our son can grow without fear. For us, this is not just about leaving, our hearts will forever remain in Gaza — it’s about protecting our lives, preserving our family, and holding on to hope.

Thank you.