Desperate Plea to Save My Elderly Parents Displaced in Gaza

Hi, My name is Maysoon Silmi. I am a Palestinian Canadian who initiated this fundraiser to help my uncle's family to evacuate Gaza. Because as you know, people in Gaza have no connection to the outside world and need someone who is living abroad to facilitate the process for them. I will be responsible to transfer any amount of money raised to them in Gaza. Here's the message of my cousin Layla, I just pasted it here with the photographs she sent exactly as she instructed me. Here's her message:

I am Layla Salmi from Gaza, a graduate of the English Literature department in 2023. I love learning and exploring other cultures. My life is completely quiet, or at least it was. I learned English and now I am learning Spanish. I have a great passion for life, art, music, and languages. I trained in journalism at the Xinhua News Agency, but I have not been able to start my professional life yet. The genocide came to extinguish our souls and our dreams. I hope that one day I will be who I want to be, and that I will touch my dreams, which seem to have become out of reach. My parents mean the world to me, and they have worked hard for me since the very beginning. The time has come for me to be a helping hand for them.

On October 7th, we had our last morning in our warm home. We were displaced and became homeless after our building, which consisted of 5 residential units and two commercial stores that were our family's main source of income, was bombed. We are now living in a tent after being displaced 9 times. As for my parents, they are elderly and require constant medical care, which the tent and Gaza in general lack, as epidemics and diseases are widespread. As you know, there are no more hospitals, schools, universities or institutions in Gaza after they were all destroyed.

I urgently request assistance to leave Gaza and provide a better environment for my parents. When Gaza is rebuilt, we will return. I am trying to secure the funds until the crossing is reopened, and we hope it will be soon to save us from this death. The Egyptian side requires $5,000 USD coordination fee for each person. We also need to provide for housing, family necessities, and the medical care we desperately need as our health has deteriorated here.

Thank you for your time and consideration. I hope that you will be moved to help my family in our time of greatest need.