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Hello, I'm Margo Stebbing from Mountain View, Hawaii. I'm a self-employed business owner of a prayer flag business, grandmother, and Great-grandmother. I am organizing this fundraiser for Oyoun Hassona, her husband Hassan A.M. Hassona, and their 5-year-old son.
I met Oyoun and Hassan several months ago through a trusted friend of mine in Gaza. I frequently communicate with them via video chat and text, and we've shared photos and messages via social media. They are loving, hardworking parents who have been through something no innocent people should have to go through. I think back to being a young mother, and I think of my own children and grandchildren, and my heart goes out to them.
Before the conflict, Oyoun was being treated for cancer for her thyroid, but treatments stopped soon after the conflict began. Recently, she became pregnant and is due this fall, but conditions in Gaza mean that she will receive no regular health care throughout her pregnancy, nor medical treatments for her cancer.
Before the war, Hassan was a small business owner. He and another business partner started a cosmetics shop and ran it together, working long hours to make it a success. During the bombing their shop was destroyed, leaving Hassan without a livelihood. Before October, he had dreamed of expanding his business. Now, it will take years just to recoup the losses he's incurred.
Oyoun and Hassan's home was also destroyed, which they witnessed after evacuating just in time. They now live in a makeshift tent, relocating over and over in an attempt to evade danger.
Oyoun says her 5-year-old son, who brings them immense joy, asks her every day, “Where did my kindergarten go?” He loved kindergarten and was so excited and proud to attend. But he only got to go for a month before all the schools in Gaza were destroyed.
The Hassona family lives in constant fear, and although Hassan works tirelessly to try to provide for them, their future is uncertain. Your donation can help them pay for medical care, education, food, water, and other necessary expenses such as clothes for the baby, phone, and internet charges to reach the outside world; transportation as needed to evacuate when ordered to do so, and exit fees if the border re-opens and they are allowed to leave Gaza.
Donations will be transferred to my US bank account, and then sent via Western Union to an exchange broker, who will get the funds to Hassan. I'm familiar with this method and have verified that funds sent through these exchange brokers do, indeed, reach the intended recipients.
If you would like to know more about Oyoun and Hassan, their social media is:
Oyoun and Hassan are very grateful for your generosity, and they hope to pay this debt of gratitude forward as they rebuild their lives when, God willing, peace returns.
