At just 5 years old, Orwah has lived most of his young life in a genocide. Along with his devoted mother, Esraa, he has spent the past 3 years being displaced under bombing and living in tents in Gaza. Together, they suffered from starvation, bitter cold and rain, and oppressive heat. Orwah even developed a painful skin disease. Until very recently, this loving family was living in a makeshift shelter with a mouse infestation.

Orwah in the family’s temporary rental, which is riddled with bullet holes

Orwah has been thriving at school, but tuition cost is high

A bright and curious child, Orwah has not had a chance to attend Kindergarten and begin his education, nor socialize with other children. Last month, Esraa finally managed to scrape together enough money to rent an apartment and enroll her son in a quality school program. And even though their home is covered with holes from shelling, and the school is in a tent — they desperately want to hold on to this small slice of stability in their lives.

The apartment has sustained severe damage from strikes

Esraa— who has been vegan for the past 7 years and is raising Orwah vegan as well— was cultivating a passion for vegan recipe development and hand-painted ceramics prior to the war. But today she has no support, no income and few prospects. She dreams of a better enviornment for her and her child, and hopes to evacuate soon.

But until then, Esraa and Orwah urgently needs ongoing financial support in order to continue renting their apartment and paying school tuition. The costs are as follows:

Monthly rent: $700
Urwa Kindergarten Monthly Tuition: $350
Books and Art Supplies for School: $315 total (paid in monthly installments)

Our fundraising goal is to have Esraa and Orwah’s rent and tuition covered for at least the next 3 months. This makes our total fundraising goal: $3,150. Any additional funds that are raised will be go towards the family’s basic living expenses, like food and clothing, as well as towards future costs of evacuating from Gaza. Even more ideally, we would love to establish ongoing monthly donors for this beautiful family.

I have been close friends with Esraa for over a year now. She is a wonderful, kind and funny person, who is trying her absolute best to maintain a sense of dignity and well-being under the harshest circumstances. She even created a hand-made coffee mug as a birthday gift from me for another friend of mine in Gaza, which she hand-delivered. It was a truly extraordinary experience. This family is fully vetted, and is connected with other activists I know personally. Please join me in helping them regain a sense of stability and hope for a better future.

Safety For Young Mom in Gaza and Education For Her Child

Help vegan mom Esraa pay rent and tuition for her little son