To my extended community,

I am Banan, a UCLA college student based in California, and I am writing this with my cousin Misk M. Hamdi, who is a recent high school graduate and currently living in Gaza. We are seeking your support to offset the costs of evacuating Misk's family from Gaza to a place of safety and protection.

Currently, there are limited ways to evacuate Gaza, one of the ways to evacuate Gaza is through a company called Ya Hala at the Rafah Crossing, which charges $5,000 to $8,000 per person, while it is cruel to assign a price tag to human lives, this is the only remaining option. For the 19 members we aim to evacuate, it would cost at least minimum $75,000 for crossing along with additional incurred costs. Currently, my three remaining maternal uncles there have lost their homes, their jobs, are currently unhoused, and will need to start a new life along with their families through no cause of their own. These costs would help support my mom's family in finding a safe, feel protected towards regaining a sense of life.

Gaza is where my family has lived for generations. Gaza is where my mom grew up, where I would come to frequently visit, and where most of our extended family still resides. Unfortunately with the ongoing crisis in Gaza, the situation has become extremely dangerous, and my mom's family continues to face malnourishment, lack of food, water, and shelter. They live in constant fear of shellings and destruction.

Misk had plans to begin her first year as a computer science student at the Islamic University of Gaza with aspirations to become a software engineer. However, with the ongoing crisis in Gaza, Misk's university was destroyed, leaving her dreams in higher education uncertain. Leen M. Hamdi, my younger cousin, is currently in primary school. Leen aspires to become an educator like our grandfather who passed away. Unfortunately, her family home was destroyed, and there is no safe places left in Gaza.

In the past several months, Misk, Leen, and I have all seen our times of grief and have collectively lost many beloved family members and friends. Misk, Leen, along with the 19 remaining members of my mom's family are some of the few people I have left.

Any amount of support given is more than merely a financial contribution, but moreso a testament to kindness and goodwill. I wish more than anything to see Misk, Leen, and my mother's family happy and secure again. Their happiness is my happiness, but as long as they are fearing for what tomorrow is to bring, they can never really be happy, and neither can I. This support, your support, will help us cross a distance, help Misk, Leen, and my mother's family towards finding safety and protection, and bring hope. And, hope is life.

From the heart,

Misk & Banan

Where Misk would have studied at the Islamic University of Gaza.