Hala (not her real name) 50 years old, has worked hard since she was 16 years old. At one point she had to drop out of school to support her parents who were struggling financially. She was happily married, but suddenly her story changed when her husband was killed in a car accident five years ago, Hala moved back to her parents’ house. Shortly after, the fighting intensified, and they had to flee. “The situation was very bad. It felt like nothing mattered anymore. I felt very, very empty and depressed,” the 50-year old widow says. During that time, she hardly ate and did not leave the house for over 50 days.
More than 6.1 million people in Syria are internally displaced, with most having to depend on neighbors, relatives, and often strangers to provide them with a place to sleep. According to OCHA, more than 11.1 million are in desperate need of humanitarian assistance. Like Hala, families often share small rooms with more than ten people, sleeping on the cold floor with only a thin mattress and without warm blankets. The situation got better when Hala and her parents were able to return to their village. When Hala saw a poster advertising SRC’s project to employ women for a few months to knit warm clothing for people in need, she did not have to think twice and registered immediately. She was very happy when she was accepted. “I am a widow and I don’t have children. My parents and I really need help, but a lot of support goes to families with children, not to people like myself.”
For a total of 45 working days, she and over 200 other women worked together to knit items such as scarves, pullovers and blankets. She received 360 USD for the days worked, and their products were distributed to internally displaced families as part of SRC’s effort to help them through the winter. “It was the first time in my life I was able to earn a larger amount of money with the work I love doing. I was able to help my father pay off some of the debts he had to keep taking to make sure we could all eat and sleep somewhere safe.” Hala also bought clothes for her parents and herself, food, household items and a sewing machine which can support her with income generation in the future.
She hopes that she will be able to continue to work and stays in touch with the other women in her group. “I felt like I finally was in a safe place, part of a community, able to freely talk about things that have been haunting me for so long. We are also all very proud that we could help other Syrians in need. I hope that they are able to return to their homes soon.” Unlike Hala, for many of the other women in the group this was the first paid job they had in their lives. “It was incredible to see how proud the other women were in financially helping their families, while being able to do something they love. I have told them that men and women are equal, and that we should not feel embarrassed about anything. Being part of this project really opened their eyes.”
