Beirut Stay Strong
“She is made from the people’s soul, She is made from bread and jasmin, So how does her taste become of fire and smoke?”
To assist in the recovery from tragic blast in the capital city, Beirut, Rotaract District 2452 and Rotaract Mediterranean MDIO initiate a crowdfunding project for Rotaract Lebanon on the platform GoFundMe.com.
Situated on the eastern bay of the Mediterranean Sea, the small country of Lebanon has always been a model for peace, tolerance, and beauty. A true jewel of nature with a people full of life and love to their very core. A perfect mix of Middle Eastern and Western culture with beautiful landscapes, filled with authentic mountains and forests, topped by the energy that its people radiate.
When Feyrouz, one of the most emblematic artists in Arab culture, sings in honor of Beirut one can only be moved by these words:
“To Beirut, A greeting from my heart to Beirut, Kisses to the sea and to the houses, To a rock, resembling an old sailors face, She is made from the people’s soul, She is made from bread and jasmin, So how does her taste become of fire and smoke?”
Just like all humanity, I was deeply shaken by the shocking incident which made me write this message to each every Lebanese reading this: People of the Sun mountains, builders of civilizations, you have always surprised the world by the depth of your strength. Thanks to you, in wealth or in misery, in war or in peaceLebanon has always prevailed.
I counted the events that happened in the past year alone and I thought of the people of Beirut and What a Beirut! I thought of the people of Northern Lebanon and what a North! I thought about the people of Southern Lebanon and what a South! I thought of all Lebanon. And all I could say is what a wonderful country and what a wonderful people.
When we see how you recreated revolution in your image, when we see how youchanged the meaning of political crisis, when we see how you redefined economic crisis, but above allhow you never backed down, never asked for any help, never complained to others, wecan only have love and respect for you and feel like we are a part of you.
The reaction of the whole world was to run to help, for all felt the pain of this catastrophe as it hit a part of them, a part of us.
Descendants of the Phoenicians, merchants of the world, masters of culture, you are not alone and never will be for you have the world on your side.
I know my words won’t change much but I know that action will.
Beirut Stay Strong comes in the view of the recent blast in the Lebanon’s capital city of Beirut, where many people lost their lives, many others severely injured and many more affected due to heavy losses to properties. The normal lives of people living in an approximately 15 km radius of the blast was disrupted severely. They suffered huge losses around the site of the blast due to the presence of 2,700 kilo tons of Ammonium Nitrate stored in the warehouse, which was left unchecked for a long duration. As a result, between 150 and 160 people lost their lives and more than 6,000 people were seriously injured. It left the major port of city destroyed and left several hundred buildings.
All the contributions will go towards renovating and rebuilding damaged houses in neighbourhoods affected by the explosion. Not only will the donations help in rebuilding the city but it will also provide basic needs to people affected by the explosion.
“We aim to raise the targeted amount of EUR 50,000 from the support of the international community to bring Beirut back to normality. Our aim is to support all those families and homes that have been affected to provide them with the basic necessities of food, medical supplies and items that will help them rebuild their homes. Rotaractors in Lebanon will be on ground supporting to lead any assistance required to any family in need. Crowdfunding project Beirut Stay Strong is intended to raise awareness of damage and support Rotaractors are providing on ground and raise sum to assist in reparation of the damages” said District Rotaract Representative Jelena Cvetkovic.
The Rotaractors of Lebanon (25 clubs and more than 200 members) who have been on the ground since the start of the disaster are assessing the needs and helping, will closely administer all the funds raised. The fundraising team will be updating on a regular basis about the status of the campaign; as well as how your contributions have helped the people of Beirut.
The crowdfunding project is run with support of Rotaract Mediterranean MDIO (represented by MDIO President Astrid Durand-Viel), who is playing a key role in setting up the project on the platform and the support of Rotary District 1760 (represented by the District Governor Jocelyne Le Gall), who is acting as a custodian of the funds received on the platform to transfer it to Lebanon. With their keen help, we are able to transfer the funds directly to the Rotary Lebanon Association and Lebanese Rotaractors.
Every contribution will make a difference no matter how big or small, we count on your donations to make Beirut rise and shine again.
For Donation link: https://www.gofundme.com/f/BeirutStayStrong
Facebook Page for Project: https://www.facebook.com/BeirutStayStrong
Rotaract District 2452: https://www.facebook.com/RotaractDistrict2452
Rotaract Mediterranean: https://www.facebook.com/RotaractMediterranean