For 13-year-old Ali and his family, the hotel that Zakat Foundation of America has rented as a refugee shelter is a place of healing.
Ali’s family fled from Syria to Jordan in April after the fighting in their hometown of Daara became too intense. Ali, the oldest of three children, was injured by a shrapnel wound to his leg and had to be hospitalized.
When Ali was released from the hospital his family needed a safe, clean place where he could heal. Through the generosity of Zakat Foundation of America donors, his family now has a safe, secure hotel room with electricity and running water. Finally they can rest and recover from their ordeal.
The 14-room hotel also houses nine other families who would otherwise be in the refugee camps. Zakat Foundation of America provides them with food packages and cleaning supplies. Four families who had been in the hotel have now found apartments, and their places have been taken by other families who are seeking more permanent residences.
The Syrian conflict began in March of 2011, and Zakat Foundation of America began almost immediately distributing emergency aid to refugees and internally displaced Syrians who had lost everything. Since the beginning of the country’s violent upheaval Zakat Foundation of America has poured more than $8 million in relief into the area. Zakat Foundation of America is also looking to the future and developing sustainability programs that will help Syrians rebuild once the conflict is over.
During the holy month of Ramadan Zakat Foundation of America will, in addition to housing refugee families like Ali’s, operate bakeries to produce food for refugees and internally displaced Syrians. Your generous donation to Syrian relief efforts will help bring healing to the Syrian children and families who yearn for peace to return to their land.