Project cost: $2,000
Household size: 5, including 2 persons with disabilities
Project Narrative:
Prior to the ISIS invasion, Sara was a housewife who spent most of her time caring for her children, including a daughter who has epilepsy and brain damage. Life was hard, but became significantly harder as a result of the 2014 ISIS invasion. On that day, Sara was attending the funeral of father but the news of the militant’s invasion forced them to immediately flee. During their frantic escape, the family had an accident, injuring both her husband and her brother.
Her husband became disabled as a result of that accident. Her mother was distraught and went into a deep depression that later caused her death. They lived in temporary housing, struggling to afford basic needs, including their daughter’s medicine. They returned home in 2017 only to discover that their home was burned and robbed of its possessions.
Sara became the family’s breadwinner, and sought opportunities to earn a livelihood that still allows her to care for her family. She approached SWIC and submitted a grant application that would provide the materials needed for a pastry business. She was already operating this business but in a limited manner because she didn’t have the proper tools. For example, Sara shared how “During the holiday season, I used to suffer because I didn’t have a refrigerator or a freezer to preserve the cake. I had a small cooler that would break down every week. I struggled with shopping for ingredients every day because I didn’t have a freezer to store them. I couldn’t accept large orders for cakes and pastries because I didn’t have the space or the equipment.”
Sara couldn’t keep up with demand because of these challenges. Through SWIC’s support, we purchased the needed equipment. Afterwards she shared, “I truly thank you for lifting me up. My monthly income will improve, and my work will progress. I don’t know how to repay you. I know that everything that has happened to me is from God, and you are truly God’s children. I feel more encouraged in life and motivated in my work because I have the necessary and good equipment that qualifies me for this job.”
Today, Sara is able to provide for all of her family’s expenses, including the medicine for her husband and daughter.
Project cost: $2,150
Household size: 5
Project Narrative:
Basam lived most of his life in Mosul, in northern Iraq, where he was living a stable life with his family until the war in Iraq in 2003. He tried to remain in Mosul despite the unstable conditions. One day in November 2003, Basam and his wife took their daughter to the clinic for a vaccine. On their way, a man attacked them. At first Basam thought that the man was going to kidnap his daughter. Instead, he cut the cross necklace that Basam’s wife was wearing. She screamed in pain as the assailant called them “Christian infidels” and ran away. After this incident, they rushed into their house and did not leave unless it was necessary. In fear, Basam closed his source of livelihood: a garment services shop.
Three months later, Basam’s family received a phone call from an unknown number stating, “we are the Jihadis, and you must pay Jizya (a yearly taxation) or convert to Islam or be killed or leave.” The next morning, he found an envelope with three bullets and a paper.
Soon after this, brother-in-law was killed for being Christian. Basam, along with his family and sister, escaped to Qaraqosh. He opened a new garment shop and lived there until the 2014 ISIS invasion. Then they had to flee again. His son, Rami, was traumatized saying that “ISIS will come and kill us.”
After moving to Erbil he opened a small garment shop. With the help of some friends, he added laundry services. In 2022 Basam applied for a one-time SWIC grant. A field officer assisted him with the application, and afterwards the field officer helped Basam in purchasing items to make his laundry and sewing business more sustainable. He received an automatic washing machine, clothing dryer, AC, and water heater, all of which will help grow his business, make his customers more comfortable, and increase his output. This is the chance he hoped for—to enhance his business and live in peace with his family.
