Help Tante Siham rebuild her shop and house

Who among us doesn’t know Tante Siham’s grocery shop in the crowded Mar Mikhael, with its big cats sleeping in every corner. Who knows, maybe you’ve even had the chance to meet her dog, Bella, a few years ago, always sleeping on the sidewalk. It would be a euphemism to say that tante Siham has marked everyone with her kindness. She genuinely cared about a lot of us. Unfortunately, she’s lost her house and her shop during the blast. This fundraiser is an attempt to return to her what she’s given to all of us over years and bring her shop back to the community. If you lived in Beirut or know someone who has, please consider helping Tante Siham repair her shop and house.

Please watch Daraj's interview of Tante Siham following the blast:


A few details about how we intend to send the money:

The official value of the Lebanese pounds is currently half its market value. For that reason, the funds need to be sent in USD and withdrawn in USD. There are currently two ways to do so. The first one is through what we call a fresh dollar account, an account where the beneficiary can receive the money in USD without it being devalued by being automatically exchanged to the Lebanese pounds but these are rare, only few people have those, generally only those working internationally. The other way is through Western Union which generally redistribute the money in Lebanese pounds at the official exchange rate but is currently distributing it in USD.

We intend to send the money to Siham Tekian by either one of two ways depending on how the situation evolves. It will be initially withdrawn by Leila in GBP and subsequently converted to USD to be send to Lebanon (unfortunately we were not allowed to create the fundraiser directly in USD as it requires being a resident of the US).

If we can ensure that the money will be distributed in USD then the money will be sent through Western Union, either directly to Siham, or through our partner on the ground, Danielle, in case it is not possible for Siham to collect the funds herself. We will happily post a picture of her receiving the money should Siham consent to it.

If Western Union only distributes the money in Lebanese pounds, we have decided to send it through the fresh dollar account of a trusted friend who will then deliver the money to Siham in cash. Should you want any further information we're happy to be contacted directly at any point.