Support Montaser & family facing hardship

My name is Kate Copeland, a retired international teacher educator based in the US. Thanks for taking a moment to read about my friend and fellow teacher, Professor Montaser Al-Halabi, and his wife Walaa and five children. Montaser is surviving in Gaza, cut off from his family who are now displaced in Egypt, in need of urgent support as they face increasing hardship as the conflict continues.

A few years ago, I had the privilege of working with Montaser on an international teacher education project in the region where he lives. (At the bottom of this page are some details about his work.)

Since the war in Gaza began, I have watched in horror as Montaser’s family suffered catastrophic losses. The university where Montaser had a remarkable 30 year career no longer exists; in fact all the universities are gone. His family home has been destroyed, along with all the other homes in his city. Montaser’s wife was wounded, close family members lost their lives, and as they moved from place to place struggling to survive, the children lived in fear for months.

Thanks to many generous donations to this GFM, Montaser’s family narrowly escaped with their lives to Cairo only days before all borders were closed, nearly one year ago. However, Montaser was unable to leave with them, and has now endured many more months of a grim and brutal existence. As a result, Montaser’s wife, Walaa, has been cut off from financial support to provide for their five children while in Cairo. For almost a year, because of the constraints of their legal status in Egypt, they’ve had no clear pathway to re-establish their lives.

Today, we reach out to you again to ask for your help in supporting Montaser’s family.

Please know that the difficult politics of this conflict are not the focus of this appeal. Our goal is humanitarian support for the family of a fellow teacher whom I have come to know and deeply respect. All funds will be transferred directly to Montaser’s family in Egypt for their benefit, until Montaser can one day rejoin them.

A message from Montaser’s wife:

“Dear Friends,

I never imagined I’d be telling this story of survival and sacrifice. After 200 days of unimaginable terror, desperate to save my children, I made the heart-wrenching decision to flee to Egypt. There we finally found refuge. But, despite Egypt’s warm welcome, we are trapped in limbo and the scars of fear and loss still haunt my children.

My husband is cut off from us in Gaza, and I am now the sole provider for my five children. Before the war, I had a job and a steady income, but leaving has meant losing everything. Without residency permits in Egypt, I cannot legally work. The cost of living in Egypt, including critical medical care for my father, is overwhelmingly high, and as rent becomes unaffordable, the threat of losing the roof over our heads looms large.

My eldest daughter dreams of completing her university education, and my youngest child should be enjoying the innocence of primary school. Instead, without residency, my children—who have already lost a year of schooling —are now caught in a web of uncertainty, and education feels like an impossible dream.

Thus, out of the love of a mother for her children, it is with great humility and a heavy heart that I ask for your help. Your kindness can help lift us out of this darkness and provide my children with stability and a future they so desperately need.

Thank you from the bottom of our hearts.”

A message from Montaser: Now, all what I hope for is helping my kids to safety and to have a better future. To the generous kind people who are trying to help, from the bottom of my heart, thank you. In addition to the fund you provided, you proved that many good people are still in the world who are just and caring.

As an educator, I came to know Montaser professionally during an international collaboration and gained great respect for his dedication to improving the lives of children in Gaza through education. This dedication continues even now as he supports courageous young teachers who are holding classes in their own makeshift homes with whatever materials they can find in order to provide hope for children who've lost everything. You can read an article that Montaser co-wrote about this effort: Stories of Learning in Forced Displacement, and view his LinkedIn Profile to learn about his work prior to the war.

Will you be a part of this family’s story? Every donation, no matter the size, will make an immeasurable difference in their lives. If you cannot donate at this time, please share this appeal with friends and family who might find it in their hearts to help.

In the meantime, please keep Montaser and his family in your prayers.

Thank you!

Kate