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Help 200 Orphans from going Homeless!

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YOU CAN HELP KEEP 200 ORPHANS OFF THE STREETS!!
 
THE STORY:

An orphanage that supports over 200 Syrian children in Gaziantep, Turkey is about to close its doors in the next couple of months! Their rent and expenses (food, electricity, salaries, etc.) is over $20,000 a month and the owners are struggling!

The Selam Centre is an orphanage that supports mainly Syrian refugees that are orphans, widows, and vulnerable families. These people have fled unimaginable circumstances of war, hunger, and devastation. Soon, they will be kicked out and forced to live on the streets!

With YOUR help, we can keep The Selam Centre open and help them continue to improve and change lives!

No donation is too small, and no idea is too silly.

Please join our team to help fundraise, brainstorm, and connect to keep Selam Centre open and running!



MY EXPERIENCE:


My name is Lena and I have known and visited The Selam Centre for over 4 years. I learned about the orphanage after my friend wrote an article about the center. After seeing the pictures and reading the story, I was compelled to do more.

My friend introduced me to Muhammad, the co-founder of the orphanage and a team member of this campaign. After months/years of planning, I finally visited the center in 2017. When I first walked into the orphanage a 7-year-old girl with big brown eyes and curly hair greeted me. She was beautiful, sweet, and playful.

I asked her name and she replied, Rizan.

She asked me mine, I said, Lena.

She smiled and said, “My baby sister’s name is Lena!”

I was touched and smiled back.

I asked Rizan, “Well then, where is Lena?”

Still smiling and not understanding the weight of what she was about to say, she replied, “She’s dead with my parents.”

It was as if this beautiful little girl slapped me in the face with the reality and ugliness of war. I was in total shock and didn’t know how to reply. I looked at Rizan and as tears fell down my cheek, I gave her a hug.



Rizan’s house was bombed in 2014 in Homs, Syria. Her oldest sister, who was 16 years old at the time, rescued Rizan and her 3 other sisters. Rummaging through the rubble of what remained of their home, they continued to dig to find where their parents and baby sister could be. After days of rummaging and waiting, they finally got the news that their parents and sister died. Rizan and her sisters fled to Gaziantep, Turkey and moved into the Selam Centre.

Today, Rizan’s oldest sister is trying to go to college, and Rizan and her other sisters are attending primary school. The Selam Centre is the only thing keeping their family together, safe, and off the streets.

Rizan’s story was just one of the many stories I heard that day that changed me forever. I can’t imagine seeing Rizan, her sisters, and the other 195 orphans be kicked out and forced to live on the street.

The Selam Centre is dramatically changing and improving the lives of children who have witnessed unimaginable horror, like what Rizan experienced a few years ago.

The center works with these kids to give them a second chance at childhood with love, care, support, and a community.

What can YOU do to help them?

Please donate and share their story


BACKGROUND:


The Selam Centre orphanage in Gaziantep, Turkey supports over 200 orphans, 55 widows, and 4-6 underprivileged families. These vulnerable people are mainly Syrian refugees who fled war, hunger, and death. The Selam Centre started in 2013, as the first Syrian orphanage in Turkey, and today, it is the largest Syrian orphanage in the country. 



OTHER WAYS YOU CAN HELP:


Selam Centre is also looking for NGO's/non-profits, volunteers, and partners to collaborate, help, and brainstorm with them. Please donate and share with everyone you know. No amount is too small and no idea too silly!

YOU can make a difference! You can be a reason that a child is safe and not being exploited on the street.



SERVICES AT THE SELAM CENTRE:

The Selam Centre not only houses orphans and widows, but it also provides comprehensive care to them including psycho-social, medical, financial, capacity building, education, and vocational training. These vulnerable people rely on the Selam Centre to be able to live a meaningful, healthy and dignified life.

How can you help today?



FUNDS
:

Your funds will go directly to the Selam Centre for rent and daily expenses. We will transfer the funds via Western Union, which takes a small currency exchange and transfer fee.

LINKS:

Check out the Selam Centre Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/selam.center/

Here is an article featuring the Selam Centre on VOA: https://www.voanews.com/a/uncertain-future-awaits-syria-s-children-/4411363.html

https://www.instagram.com/selam.center/





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Donations 

  • Anonymous
    • $200 
    • 4 yrs
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Fundraising team (7)

Lena Arkawi
Organizer
Raised $4,186 from 31 donations
Washington D.C., DC
Ghalia Farzat
Team member
Raised $2,300 from 4 donations
Rasmiya Masoud
Team member
Raised $1,210 from 4 donations
Faten Faruq
Team member
Raised $520 from 2 donations
Nadim Hallal
Team member
Raised $100 from 1 donation

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