Together for the Family cares for Syrian refugees through ministries including baby care for new mothers, medical and dental clinics, and educational classes for children. Executive Director Izdihar Kassis recently shared this news:
• In response to the 6.4 magnitude earthquake in February 2023, we set up three schools and classrooms in the affected areas to provide educational and psychological support to 61 students. This program will continue through 2024.
Read MoreAs we seek to engage followers of Christ in His mission in Syria and Lebanon, The Outreach Foundation continues in partnership with the National Evangelical Synod of Syria and Lebanon (NESSL). This July three Outreach board members, Nancy Fox, Lois Andrews, and Lisa Culpepper traveled to Beirut to visit partners and attend the annual Women’s Conference in Dhour Choueir, Lebanon.
Read MoreThe Firm Foundation project has proven to be a remarkable initiative since its inception in March, following the devastating earthquake in the region. This program has effectively addressed the pressing need for education among individuals whose schools were either destroyed or repurposed as shelters for the homeless. Extensive efforts have been dedicated to implementing a wide range of activities, resulting in not only the continuation of academic pursuits for these students but also an enhanced educational experience.
Read MoreTogether for the Family’s Executive Director Izdihar Kassis recently shared this news:
Together for the Family currently serves more than 1,700 families who were affected by February’s earthquake. During our visits to devastated areas in Aleppo and Latakia, we noticed that many children have no shoes or toys. So, in addition to providing food and blankets, we decided to provide them with shoes and toys! It was also a great time to share and pray with children and adults.
Read MoreIf Matthew 25:40 had a modern “footnote,” it might say “Go, see an example of this in the Beqaa Valley at Together for the Family.” Indeed, this collection of ministries, overseen by their Executive Director Izdihar Kassis, consistently amazes me with its caring and creativity for serving Syrian refugees: educational classes for the little ones who have access to no other schools; medical/dental clinics; job training in sewing, carpentry and hair/makeup application; baby care with new mothers…the list goes on and on.
Read MoreTruly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.
Matthew 25:40
It is not in the news much these days, but it is a significant part of the ministry we do, especially in places like Jordan, Lebanon, and South Sudan. And we do it with your help, my friends. There are currently more than 80 million displaced people around the world – that means one out of every 97 people – and more than 40% are children. This desperate situation is compounded by the pandemic as well as by the economic disasters of host countries, such as is in Lebanon.
Read MoreAfter the team headed home following our journey into Syria in late October, two of us remained to visit partners like Together for the Family, which serves Syrian refugee families in the Beqaa Valley with hope and with healing. TFF Director, Izdihar Kassis Issac, welcomed Lois Andrews (First Presbyterian San Diego) and me with joy and showed us around to experience glimpses of some of the ministries which she and her staff offer: a dental clinic, basic education classes for little ones who have not had much schooling because of the war in Syria, skills training in things like carpentry and sewing. The women in the sewing class were hard at work making holiday items for a Christmas bazaar to be held soon in Beirut. We also visited a class that is training women to work in hair and nail salons.
Read MoreThe Family Oasis
Twelve years passed and I never gave up on this dream: Together for the Family needs a permanent center for its various activities after all our years of renting land and putting up temporary structures. Perhaps it was more wishful thinking than even a dream! Who could afford to pay for a property? With the global crisis that the world is facing, who would think to help us buy a piece of land in Lebanon? Those who know me well will understand that I do not easily give up my dreams!
I shared my dream with several friends and, in June, sent an appeal to all our partners after we found an appropriate piece of land for an exceptional deal. One of our partners is a dear sister, Dr. Sharon Ayabe, who visited us a couple of times, coming all the way from Hawaii. In June Sharon’s sister, Cheryl suddenly passed away. Cheryl loved Jesus and others - especially children and families. In life, she was gentle and generous. Sharon and her dad experienced unending sorrow until the Lord lifted their heads and dried their tears with the idea of the Family Oasis! It would be a place for the expanded and consolidated ministry of Together for the Family where everyone who enters it would surely find comfort, love, peace, and a better future. They began giving and raising funds to purchase the land. The major bulk of funding for the purchase was raised by Sharon and her dad and others joined in as well. In no time the long-awaited dream became a reality!
Read MoreFresh. It is a word we hear on a daily basis on our travels around Lebanon and in our visits with Outreach partners here. It modifies the word “money.” Fresh money. It is the money that comes to you after the economic crisis began in Lebanon many months ago. If you want old money, the money you deposited and saved in your bank account, you will be found at a loss. Dollars in the bank are restricted for withdrawals, and if you do withdraw them, you will get back the Lebanese equivalent at the old rate, thereby losing up to 90% of their value. Fresh money, especially for an NGO like many of the partners here, becomes a new lifeline.
Not wanting to dwell in such a hard place, let us make a list of the more joyful ways we think of for the word fresh, and I think in the listing you will discover what we found: God is still making all things new – fresh.
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