Help the Shehada Family Flee Gaza to Safety

Help the Shehada Family Flee Gaza to Safety

A message from Dr. Stephen Friend:

I met Abed El-Fatah Shehada in November 2021 when I visited Gaza. From the very first day, Abed’s warmth, generosity and kindness were apparent, as he welcomed me to his beloved Gaza and showed me around. His contributions and genuine care about the well-being of his community were apparent. Originally a theater director, Abed had begun working with a grassroots Gazan non-profit, the Future Development Commission (FDC) with a focus on psychosocial support for the community, which was, even at that time, reeling from a recent aggression in May that year.

In the 2.5 years since I met him in person, Madeline and I have worked closely with Abed and connected him to many other brilliant and like-minded humanitarians outside of Gaza to support his incredible efforts from beyond Gaza. During this time, Abed El-Fatah’s organization coordinated the introduction of “learning by doing” through Lego robotics in UNRWA schools, and facilitated the participation of 20 Gazan PSS specialists in the award-winning Keys to Infant Caregiving Training Program (taught by Dr. Monica Oxford and Kimberlee Shoecraft of the University of Washington’s Barnard Center for Infant Mental Health and Development).

Even during the current difficult period they are facing, Abed El-Fatah and his wife, Bahya Shehada, are volunteering to help their communities, particularly supporting children and young people, while they do what they can to secure basic needs and safety for their own family.

Every family in Gaza has been affected by the devastating circumstances ongoing since October 2023. In the Shehada's case, their home in the North of was destroyed in an airstrike in the very first week of the aggression. They have since survived bombings and been displaced several times.

It is important to emphasize that the Shehada family loves Gaza and are not choosing to leave; they are being forced to flee to survive and to have a life for their children. 100% of funds raised through this campaign will be wired to the Shehada family in Gaza from the account set up by Dr. Stephen Friend.

Who are you helping?

We are working to fund the evacuation of the Shehada family from Gaza. Your donation would go directly to support Abdel-Fatah, his wife Bahya (a lecturer at Al-Aqsa University) and their four brilliant daughters: 12 year-old Weam, 10 year-old Wesam, 5-year old Zina, and 3 year-old Sham.

Bahya has a visa to Morocco, and the family is hopeful that this will serve as an entry-point to securing visas there for the other members and eventually moving the family to Morocco, where Bahya can begin her PhD studies and the family can start a new life.

What are the costs?

USD 28,000: Exiting Gaza via Rafah (into Egypt)

USD 15,000: Cost of living expenses for Egypt/Morocco for an unknown period of time

USD 6000 for flights out of Egypt

TOTAL: USD 49,000

It is important to note that the situation is uncertain: even if the family is unable to obtain visas to Morocco, the funds will allow the Shehada family to leave Gaza to safety in Egypt. If for any reason their efforts to leave Gaza are not successful, please know your funds will be pivotal in helping them to survive the ongoing crisis there.

This fundraiser has been organized with the full support and involvement of the Shehada family, who shared with us the below account of what they have faced in Gaza since October 7:

Our Story (written by Abed El-Fatah Shehada, with minor editing for clarity and concision)

It was about 6:00 AM when my family and I were preparing ourselves to go to school and work. At that moment, we started hearing the sounds of rockets that were launched from a place not far from our house. As we had done in previous escalations and wars, we started quickly preparing our emergency kit to leave our house, which was located in the north-south of Gaza City. We thought that this war would be like the previous many wars in Gaza and would take some weeks, but no one guessed that this war was different at all, so we left very fast without taking our clothes or any other belongings. We moved to the south of Gaza City, where the house of my wife's family is. After two days and under intense Israeli airstrikes, we were forced to leave the house, and I succeeded in finding a taxi to bring us to Khan Younis, in the south of the Gaza Strip. This was our first time moving under the heavy airstrikes, and I will never forget the terrified voices of my children praying for God to be with us all the time, and even my three year-old Sham was repeating “Ya Rab, Ya Rab” (my God help us) during the hour drive to Khan Younis.

My family and I continued following the news about our area, and after 4 days, the Israeli attacks became more heavy, and all of Gaza and especially the north of Gaza was being destroyed by Israeli airstrikes, including 1000 kg bombs. Some of our friends who were still staying in Gaza City sent us photos and videos of our home. It was totally destroyed along with all of the neighborhood (more than 16 buildings) and houses became just mountains of rubble. My little daughter was asking about her toys, about her clothes, school kits, and our memories. My wife and I saw all of our efforts in this life disappear in an instant.

Our family stayed in my brother’s house in Khan Younis for about one month, until the Israeli army decided to attack the area by land. During this stage, many women and children were killed and houses continued to be destroyed, and we realized the place where we had taken refuge was now extremely dangerous. Again, our family was forced to leave and go to the middle of the Gaza Strip where we have stayed until now, under this war and daily indiscriminate airstrikes on the Palestinian people. Our journey of displacement is the longest we have ever undergone and very difficult, unlike anything we have faced before.

Messages from the Shehada Family:

A message from Weaam (age 12):

My name is Weaam, I have big dreams and ambitions, but if you live in the Gaza Strip, you know that your dreams are sieged, just like the place you live in. My talents are drawing and writing poetry. My father and mother are interested in developing my talents, and they were sending me to get some certificates and participate in activities for talented children in Gaza City, but now my father cannot even find crayons for me to draw with because everything is not allowed to enter Gaza. I dream to flee far away from death, siege, and wars and be an artist.

A message from Bahya (age 40):

My name is Bahya, and I am a lecturer at Al Aqsa University. I love my work and my students, but this war has destroyed everything; my work, my home, and my city, but I hope you can help me to save my dream, and to be the hope for a woman who is struggling for herself and her family. I was preparing for a PhD in Business Administration, and I received a grant from the Palestinian Ministry of Education in 2023 to study in Morocco. Everything became more difficult during the last war; the cost of transportation became very high, and the internet connection was very poor and did not exist in the place where I and my family lived. I lost my laptop and every document I have worked on to prepare my PhD research. I am looking for support for me and my family to get safe and reach our dreams of a simple life far from death and war.

A message from Abed El-Fatah (age 41):

My name is Abed El-Ftah, and I serve as a programs officer at the Future Development Commission (FDC, a Palestinian NGO). I am also a writer and theater director. I have worked as an activist to support our community for more than 16 years. Above all, I am a father and husband who is trying to do everything to save his family. Even after the war, I will face a lot of challenges to keep my family safe and to keep working to support children and women in our community, even in these hard situations. My dream is to take our family to a safe land and to continue contributing to society in any way I can.

A message from Wesam (age 10):

My name is Wesam, and I am living in fear every day, especially at night when the bombing surrounds us. I bushed my little brother between my dad and my mom and hung both of them and my little sisters, Sham and Zina. I am still too young to understand exactly why we are in this situation, when this will be resolved, and why this happened to us and to all children in Gaza. My preferred food and sweets do not exist, my school and friends are gone, my bed, my room, and life have all become a dream of another life.

We sincerely thank you for considering supporting the Shehada family during the most difficult time they have ever faced. Any money you are able to donate will have a crucial impact on enabling them to re-establish their lives in safety, God willing. Please feel free to reach out with any questions.

With gratitude and hope,

Dr. Stephen Friend