<div>My name is Mohammed, and this is a very personal dream I have carried since childhood.
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<div>My parents moved from Guinea Conakry to The Gambia as immigrants, searching for a better life. But life was not easy for us. We grew up renting, moving from place to place, and sometimes living in very difficult conditions. At one point, we lived in a mud house without electricity. As a child, watching my parents struggle to provide and deal with landlords was something that stayed with me deeply.
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<div>At the age of 15, I started collecting and selling scrap metal just to have money for food and to support my family in any way I could. It wasn’t much, but it taught me responsibility early. Even when things were tough, I kept pushing, because I always had one dream in mind—to one day build a home for my family.
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<div>During high school, I met my friend Emily. She has been a major support in my life and for my family. Through her help, we were able to live in a better place with electricity and basic needs. Around that time, I also started saving whatever I could, and eventually, I was able to buy a small plot of land. That moment meant everything to me—it made my dream feel real.
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<div>Later, I made the difficult decision to travel to Europe in search of better opportunities. I came to Portugal with hope and determination to change my situation and support my family. For the past two years, I have been working hard, saving as much as I can, while also taking care of my responsibilities here and back home.
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<div>Step by step, I started building the house—a simple three-bedroom home for my family. I managed to pay for the design, hire workers, and begin construction with the help of a site engineer. It has not been easy, but I have stayed committed.
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<div>Right now, I have reached a very important stage. The pillars and roofing need to be completed, and this part is critical for the safety and strength of the house. With the rainy season approaching, the engineer has advised that this work needs to be done urgently.
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<div>Unfortunately, I cannot complete this stage alone.
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<div>That is why I am reaching out for support. Any help, no matter how small, will go directly toward completing this home for my family. This is more than just a building—it is stability, security, and peace of mind for the people who raised me.
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<div>I am truly grateful to my friend Emily for standing by me and helping me take this step. And to anyone willing to support, thank you from the bottom of my heart.
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<div>Your support will help turn this dream into reality.
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<div>Emily here;
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<div>Mohammed and I met because his teacher was getting a new phone at the time of his graduation. He was a good student, and his teacher gave him his old phone as a graduation present. We met because of this teacher, happening to meet online.
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<div>At the time of us meeting was the start of the CoVid19 pandemic. His father had died, and his mother, whom usually sold fruit in the markets, could not. Neither could his grandmother beg for what she could and stay safe. His landlord had been increasingly abusive during this time; taking anger out on his mother and even his younger siblings. I had enough to give him enough; and we both kept going.
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<div>I knew that I could not do this alone, and I asked for help. It was given. Due to the generosity of not just me, but the global community, Mohammed and his family was able to stay sheltered; even after a storm had caved a wall in at his house.
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<div>Mohammed went to college; and I was able to bring him help for this as well. He, within a year of college, had enough of a foundation to transition to being a schoolteacher. He is Fula, and grew up around many people and many languages; I have never asked him how many, but I believe he said once he knew 5 languages just by growing up in such a multilingual place; I am quite sure he has learned at least 2 more to a conversational level since. He taught kids in his community English, and helped them learn each other's too. He lead a classroom before he was 21. We, together, were able to raise funds for not only his own education; but pens and pencils and notebooks for his own students. When his younger siblings needed school supplies as well, we were able to help. When his bike broke down, we were able to help.
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<div>A few years ago; I became unable to consistently support Mohammed. At a time when he was working up the funds and resources to travel up to Europe in order to seek employment, I was not there. In the face of an uncertain future, I was fearful.
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<div>To my absolute delight, he set across the world. The caravan ahead of him died when they ran out of water in the Sahara; when he reached Tunisia he was stranded among anti-immigration protests and had his phone smashed to the ground during one of them. He still managed to find a phone and message me. For months, he and his friend helped others across the Mediterranean until they could themselves, until there were two spaces on a boat. It was an inflatable; it flipped, it's engine stopped working halfway through the ocean. And yet he texted me from a plane, with an Italian Red Cross lanyard after managing to cross out of international waters. I cried with joy, and he was off to his future, always moving forward. He left the old city to Portugal, and his friend still lives in the old city.
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<div>A couple years ago, he messaged me that he was able to commission an architect for his family home. I thought that it was a goal for himself long in the future, a seed to sprout many years later. Consistently I am disproven, consistently I am shown a man that works harder and is more knowledgeable and resourceful than I think possible. He bought the plot of land; he laid the foundation. This is something that is happening, and it is happening because of him.
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<div>$1000 gets us to the point where we can apply for a roofing loan. We have until June before the rainy season hits; but the more time, the more we risk waterlogged concrete that will not set and may not be stable; and the later in the season, the harder the rain and the more the risks for all of he construction.
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<div>It will be at least $500 to get us to the point of finishing the concrete and having it set; whilst everything needs to be done before the rainy season; the concrete not being waterlogged is a true necessity.
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<div>He has shown me the most beautiful world I know; a world of us, a world of connection, the world I live in. It is because of an international community that either of us have reached where we are and continue to move forward. We can do this. This is permanent housing for an entire family, and it is so within reach that it gives me hope for all to achieve the same.
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<div>Let's do this. Together
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