There was a time when Lebanon’s capital city, Beirut, was known as the ‘Paris of the Middle East’ and. given the profound crisis that Lebanon is currently experiencing, the memory of those glamorous times is all the more painful today. The financial crisis, with the banks on the brink of bankruptcy, the devastatingly high level of unemployment and the sheer lack of hope for the future are bringing this once prosperous Middle Eastern country to the edge of the abyss.
For many people, the struggle for survival is a reality, especially for those with little children in their care – people like Georgette. She is a living image of the tragic situation that is afflicting Lebanon.
Her cabinets were almost empty. Food was quickly running out. Georgette’s three grandchildren were hungry But where do you go for necessities in a country where everyone is suffering? Where food is a scarcity you can only hope to afford?
“I live in a poor quarter of the city and our situation is very bad, especially after last August’s explosion in Beirut. I live there with my three grandchildren. We are all alone in that house. I am responsible for them and I don’t have anybody to help me, except for God, and the benefactors of ACN,” she said.
Georgette is a recipient of food packages made possible through the kindness of ACN donors, and they arrived just at the right time. These care parcels contain basic provisions which Georgette gratefully accepts.
“I was so delighted to receive this help, because it means I can now feed my grandchildren for a month,” she explained.
Though she struggles, Georgette is constantly comforted by her Christian Faith. “I know that I am not alone, and this is more important to me even more than the food aid… just knowing that there are people thinking about us. I give thanks to God every day. He has always guided me and my family and has sent us kind people to help us through these difficult times.”
This is just one example – one woman, one mother, one grandmother – desperately trying to keep her family safe and healthy. Lebanon is filled with ‘Georgettes’, those consumed with worry and heartbreak that their children will go to bed hungry.
Would you be the person that those in need, like Georgette, give thanks for when their burdens are lifted?
Your kind donation will enable Aid to the Church in Need (Malta) reach out to many more Christians in distress this winter.
