Hello everyone,

My name is Lubna Saleh, and I am reaching out in hopes of bringing the community together to help support the 14 family members (three related families) of a very close friend who, by the Grace of God, managed to get out of Gaza and are now safely in Canada. Fifteen other family members are currently in Egypt, waiting to be reunited with the rest of their family here in Mississauga.

The first family is composed of nine people who came in two separate groups over the summer: an elderly couple, three of their adult children, their daughter-in-law, and their three grandchildren. They live together in a townhouse in Mississauga, Ontario. Three of the nine are working, two in barely more than minimum wage jobs, in an effort to cover expenses. One commutes 2 hours to Scarborough each way to work in a mechanic's shop. Their rent alone is $3,500 a month.

The second family consists of two brothers, newly graduated from university with a background in Mechatronics Engineering and Software Engineering. They are currently staying with my friend (their aunt) and have yet to figure out where to start. They hope to bring their parents and younger sister who are still in Egypt once they have managed to find jobs and some financial stability. In the meantime, their aunt is covering all their expenses.

The third family, which consists of three adult siblings, lives in a one-bedroom basement apartment in Mississauga. They too hope to bring their parents from Egypt once they find a bit more stability. One has managed to find a job at a spice packaging warehouse in Vaughan, commuting 1.5 hours each way. The other has found two part time jobs as an interior designer (she has a degree in architecture) and working at a modest clothing shop. Their younger brother is hoping to finish his senior year of high school. They are currently paying $1,600 per month for rent.

These fourteen innocent victims – as well as the 15 family members who remain in Egypt - have lived through what no human being should have to experience, and now need our help. They left Gaza with not much more than the clothes on their backs and are now trying hard to build their lives from scratch. Please, look around you – make a list of all the possessions you have been blessed with – and THAT is what they need. Everything from jobs (all are university graduates) to a car to household items to rent money to diapers to winter coats and everything in between. To be honest, the idea of this father of three, spending four hours a day commuting, in the cold of winter, only to spend another eight or ten hours on his feet at work, after so much trauma and heartache, breaks my heart – if someone out there is ready to change vehicles, please keep this young man in mind – he is great with cars!

Please donate what you can to help this family rebuild their lives. And please, keep this family, and all the people of Gaza and Lebanon, in your prayers.

Lubna