Christian Hope Center – Aleppo

Who We Are

The Hope Centre was founded in 2018 as an ecumenical youth organization operating under the Latin Archdiocese in Syria, in full coordination with all Christian denominational leaders in each province. Since its inception, the centre has dedicated its mission to serving, supporting, and assisting Christian families, in order to alleviate their suffering and provide a better future for them.

Role of the Sisters of the Congregation of the Religious of Jesus and Mary

Since the establishment of the centre, the Sisters of the Congregation of the Religious of Jesus and Mary have played a essential role in supporting and encouraging the team, providing spiritual guidance, and moral and material support. This monastic role is strengthened as a supervising party on projects and as the responsible entity for the centre in front of the Latin Apostolic Vicariate.

Our Mission

We work to preserve the Christian presence starting from children and their education, aiming for a better future for the youth and caring for the elderly. Therefore, we target the Christian family in all its members, drawing our inspiration from our Holy Cross symbol within our logo, and in turn, we spread this hope through our projects.

Our Goal

Our goal is to serve the community and develop it to achieve:

• Economically independent families not reliant on aid.
• Elderly individuals not abandoned, surrounded by support and love.
• Skilled and well-trained youth to obtain better job opportunities and be equipped to stay in their homeland.
• Children with high educational levels and creative opportunities in all areas of growth and development.

Our Values

We live at the centre values characterized by humble service, seeking to work with responsibility and justice. This justice ensures reaching all Christian families without exception, listening sincerely to the needs of families, trying to meet them, and giving them hope and encouragement to continue.

Our Team

The core of the Christian Hope Centre team began with eight volunteers alongside the centre’s founders. Today, the team consists of approximately 200 volunteers and more.

Our Projects

Our projects are numerous and varied, including:

Relief Projects:

Aid to families in need through the monthly distribution of financial assistance. These projects include:

• The Family To Family program, supported by Caritas Poland, which last year targeted over 4,400 families in Aleppo by providing a monthly financial aid amount of 125,000 SYP to the neediest families. The project is done in close partnership with all Catholic and Orthodox denominations in Aleppo, who play a crucial role in distributing this aid to their congregants who were selected collaboratively by the church and the team at the Hope Centre responsible for the program.
• The Multi-Purpose Cash Aid program, which provides monthly emergency assistance over nine months in response to the deteriorating living conditions after the earthquake that hit the city. With support from the Mennonite Central Committee (MCC), the monthly support reaches 1,900 earthquake-affected families in Aleppo, with a monthly amount of 250,000 SYP, until March 2024.
• Micro Projects Livelihood Support Projects

These projects aim to support family breadwinners in starting their own projects or revitalizing their professions that were affected by the war, providing the necessary work equipment and tools craftsmen and project owners need in the form of small loans to enable them to create an independent source of income for themselves and their families, and living a dignified life. To date, the Micro Projects program has supported over 1,535 projects in Aleppo (655 small projects), Homs (630 small projects), and Damascus (250 small projects), in addition to the Micro Agriculture Projects that supported over 108 farmers in the villages of rural Homs.

• Youth Training and Development Program (DISC-Development, Impact and Support)

The training and development centre is a program dedicated to building the capacity of youth and developing their vocational skills to suit good job opportunities. At the same time, accompanying young people on their journey of self-discovery and development. Over 670 graduates in the cities of Homs, Damascus, and Aleppo have been supported through this program. More than 346 students have successfully found jobs thanks to their participation in the DISC program. The centre provides strengthening courses in English language, computer skills, as well as specialized training in life and vocational skills, with a substantial portion of the program dedicated to mentoring and youth formation.

• Study Zone Centres

Ideal environments for study aimed at providing suitable conditions for youth to continue their education and succeed academically. These centres are located in 3 Syrian cities (1 centre in Homs, 1 in the village of Al-Mouzeina in rural Homs, 2 in Damascus, 4 in Latakia and 1 in Tartus currently being prepared). These centres collectively serve over 2,000 students daily by providing basic needs such as electricity, internet, and educational support. Some of these centres also offer specialized services for students of architecture and dentistry, as in the Science Zone centres in Aleppo and Homs.

Educational Projects:

• Children University Project

An educational program present in the cities of Aleppo and Homs, specifically designed for children ages 6 to 16.

The goal of this program is to enhance creativity in children by providing diverse educational experiences that simulate university curricula in an interactive, advanced, and innovative way.

It utilizes engaging methods such as using LEGO blocks as an educational tool to help children understand the basics of programming and robotics from a young age.

The academy provides the opportunity for up to 360 children annually to explore specific fields and aspire to pursue specializations similar to university fields such as engineering, journalism, programming, law, or medicine at a young age.

At the same time, their life skills are developed and their mental health is monitored through the psychological and social support provided by the centre.

• School To School Project

The project started in 2019 in response to the deteriorating education situation and financial difficulties faced by schools in meeting their educational needs in recent years. It supported eight private schools in Aleppo and schools in Homs in providing educational supplies, equipment, and clarification aids.

During the current year, the project includes the following components:

• Providing educational supplies to nine private schools in Aleppo.
• Contributing to the reinforcement and renovation of Kilikya Private Highschool in Aleppo and Al-Ikhlas School in Hama after they were damage by the earthquake.
• A specialized training program for teachers in private elementary schools in Aleppo aimed at developing and supporting their skills.

Youth Conference

The first conference for Christian youth was held in October 2022, bringing together 85 Syrian young men and women aged between 24 and 40 from all regions of Syria to identify and address the challenges faced by the Christian youth community in light of the difficult economic and social conditions, as well as the alarming numbers of youth emigrating from Syria. The conference aims to identify the needs, aspirations, and challenges of young people, and seeks to promote the active participation of Christian youth in building their future.

Following the conference, the youth took the necessary steps to meet the needs of their community and proposed a number of initiatives that are currently being worked on, including:

A platform to secure job opportunities for Christian youth and training programs in the cities of Latakia and Hama, taking into account the needs of the region through the participated youth, as well as multiple projects from youth proposals. The second conference is scheduled to be held between 1^st and 2^nd December 2023.

In addition to the ongoing projects mentioned earlier, the Centre of Christian Hope played a role in relief interventions after the earthquake, including:

Distribution of meals during the first week after the earthquake.

Around 45,000 meals were distributed within 14 centres in Aleppo, in three daily meals from 6/2/2023 to 12/2/2023, within 14 centres affiliated with various Christian denominations.

Distribution of sponge mattresses for one time.

1200 mattresses were distributed to 14 centres affiliated with various churches in Aleppo during the first week after the earthquake.

Distribution of approximately 1900 portions, including food, health supplies, and water, within 6 shelters in the city of Latakia, in addition to distributing 135 blankets and mattresses.

Solar Energy Support Projects in Rural Areas

Due to the significant damage to water and electricity networks and the great need in rural areas, the centre has supported several villages by installing a solar energy system and submersible pumps for public wells in order to meet the residents’ needs for drinking water and irrigation. The aim is to secure the wells systems in Azir, Al-Hamra, Al-Aaliyat, Kesab, Al-Mamourah, and Sadad, while the program is expected to continue supporting other areas including Mashta Azar and Al-Qusayr.

Various Projects and Relief Initiatives

During the years between 2018 and 2020, the centre carried out several relief projects and initiatives in collaboration with different scouts and associations. Additionally, the centre provided financial support for the restoration of war-damaged facilities, including:

• Renovation of Al-Kalema School and Playground belonging to the Syriac Orthodox Archdiocese.
• Renovation of the playground of Saint Vartan Monastery for the Jesuit fathers.
• Renovation of the rooftop playground of the Syriac Orthodox Archdiocese.
• Providing a children’s area in the Terra Santa Monastery for the Franciscan Friars.

Response After the Earthquake

In collaboration with the Ecumenical Relief Committee after the earthquake, the centre implemented several programs:

• Distribution of food rations.

In Aleppo, 3673 model food rations were distributed to earthquake-affected families after coordinating data with other institutions and various churches. The program was executed once during the months of March and April 2023.

• Reinforcement of damaged buildings.

Thirteen damaged residential buildings were reinforced structurally in Aleppo, along with two buildings under construction. It is expected that approximately ten slightly damaged buildings (public facilities) will be renovated under the program after ensuring the reinforcement of all dangerous and threatened by evacuation residential buildings.

• Support for affected commercial businesses or craft workshops.

In recent months, 25 affected shops or workshops were supported as part of micro-project support, providing necessary work supplies and equipment to support livelihoods, ensuring that these shops remain operational and the workshop owners work in them.

• Renovation of homes and residential apartments.

In total, 235 earthquake-affected residential apartments were visited (based on data collected from the Ecumenical Relief Committee and various churches), of which 128 residential apartments were renovated, with 58 apartments currently under renovation. The project is expected to continue with the renovation of at least 500 homes in the coming months.