Gaza Emergency Appeal

Thank you for all the support and concern you have shown for families in Gaza since the war started. Hundreds of new supporters joined this cause while older supporters persevered. Your support helped displaced families in Gaza in so many ways. In light of the circumstances and needs of the Gaza community, our program has transformed mainly into a hot meals program. In partnership with the World Food Programme, and with your generosity, our teams in Gaza are serving over 40,000 hot meals per day.

Because there’s a lot to report on, I have divided the report into two parts. Please find Part 1 below.

Immediate Response to October 7th War

With your support, Rebuilding Alliance and our partner Non-Governmental Organizations responded immediately to the crisis and provided humanitarian aid to Palestinian families in need, saving lives and preventing further suffering. 

• RA started with the provision of food staples and hygiene supplies to families taking shelter in their relative’s homes. 
• Water and baskets of fresh vegetables were also distributed. 
• We expanded our work in accordance with the needs of the community in tune with the funds generated. 
• Other items that have been provided to displaced families include blankets, sheets, mattresses, lice shampoo, sanitizers, feminine hygiene products, solar lights, diapers for children, supplies for infants including special milk formula, needles for the sick, and gowns for the medical staff at the hospital. 

Working with our NGO partners in Gaza

For the first three months, we worked with our four long-term Non-Governmental Org partners in Gaza. These are: Women Programs Center-Rafah (WPC-R); El Amal Rehabilitation Society-Rafah (ERS); Al Basma Club for the Disabled (ABCD), and Youth Vision Society (YVS). 

Because our partners and coordinators are well-placed in the community, they have the advantage of knowing exactly the needs of families and responding exactly to them. A three-month-old baby who had a cardiac condition needed a special type of milk. His family escaped from the north. The baby was starving because the family couldn't afford the milk. He was provided special baby formula at the Women Programs Center-Rafah. 

Please follow the details of the relief work carried out by all four partner NGOs in the first month of the war.  

• Women Programs Center-Rafah

The Women Programs Center, located in Rafah, provided aid to displaced families taking shelter in UNRWA schools and in their relative's homes. WPC-R delivered the following: 

1. 350 Food Parcels 
2. 350 Hygiene kits given at UNRWA schools containing 20 boxes of disposable gloves; 7 boxes of face masks; 15 boxes of sanitizers; and 135 liters of Alcohol
3. 350 Vegetable Baskets
4. 200 Packets of Diapers for children
5. 100 pieces of clothing for women (praying clothes, underclothes, pants, personal items)
6. 6. 150 mattresses, pillows, and blankets
7. 100 sketchbooks and colors for the kids in the UNRWA schools
8. 6 baby bags containing clothes, diapers, milk, soothers

WPC-R shared that 100 women taking shelter in a school, Shaboura Camp, Rafah, had not changed in ten days as they needed a bathroom and clean clothes. They were grateful for new clothes. A woman shared her displacement journey from Gaza City to Rafah: “We saw death with our own eyes. By God, we were afraid that we would die. We left [our houses] with what was on us. May God bless you for the help.”

•  El Amal Rehabilitation Society-Rafah

 The El Amal Rehabilitation Society-Rafah (ERS) provided aid to families who came from the north of Gaza and Gaza City and also to the families in Rafah that were affected by war. ERS organized a pick-up of food boxes at a local store, easing the financial burdens of families affected by the war. Fearing bombing, only 50 families were allowed to come to the store a day to avoid overcrowding to ensure their safety.

1. 457 Food Parcels
2. Hygiene kits and skin ointments for children
3. 300 bottles of lice shampoo
4. 1153 pieces of clothing for 384 families
5. 500 sanitizers
6. 800 gowns for the staff of Abu Yousef Al Najar Hospital, Rafah 

• Al Basma Club for the Disabled (ABCD)

The Al Basma Club for the Disabled (ABCD) was also displaced. They moved to the central region in Deir al-Balah. Eid, Head of ABCD, enlisted some friends in Deir al-Balah and formed committees to provide relief items to families taking shelter in schools, playgrounds, and relatives' homes. These include the areas of the Rodolphe Filter School, Deir Al-Balah Primary School, Al-Durra Stadium, Deir Al-Balah Services Club, and Deir Camp. Deir al-Balah is densely populated and filled with displaced families. In addition, a board member of Al-Basma carried out the relief work in the Khan Yunis area. ABCD provided the following items:

1. 150 Vegetable baskets
2. 250 food vouchers
3. 3500 rice meals
4. 4800 water bottles
5. 500 Solar lights
6. 200 Empty plastic water gallons with a tap
7. 30 bags of flour 

Eid, head of ABCD, shared that three days before the war, he had sold his car. This enabled him to pay most of the suppliers in cash.  Because he was new to the area, suppliers refused to work on credit. 

• Youth Vision Society (YVS)

The Youth Vision Society (YVS) stayed in the North, in Gaza City to serve thousands of families who remained behind. We did not hear from them for a long time and were relieved when we finally heard from them. The lack of communication and resources did not put a dent in their commitment to help their local community. 

1. 320 food boxes 
2. 500 plastic tarps 

Helping others despite the challenges

Two CBO Partners and their staff are coping with forced relocation, one evacuating from the North and one choosing to stay in the North.  Many members of RA's teams have lost their homes and are themselves in temporary shelter with family members. Some have lost next of kin in the bombings. All team members who have homes or offices have taken-in families who needed temporary shelter.  

Despite these challenges, our partner NGOs and staff continue to serve their community and put the needs of others before theirs. We honor their bravery and commitment to their community. 

• All NGO partners told us that they are surrounded by danger and fear that the bombing can target them at any time. 
• Lack of transportation and fuel makes it difficult to carry out the relief work. Often they have to use the donkey carts for transportation. 
• Because of the extraordinary situation, sketchy communication, and intermittent shutdowns of the internet, partners have difficulty in sharing their reports. 

Growing Needs

Given the scale of destruction and an extreme shortage of resources, the need is growing with each passing day. One partner NGO told us that they need a budget equal to a country to meet the needs of the community. As a dozen countries, including the United States, suspend funding to the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), our program becomes more essential than ever.

We are thankful to you. Your contribution made it possible for us to respond to the October 7 War and carry out the critical work. We were pleasantly surprised when the World Food Program chose us for their first hot meals program in Gaza. Since the last week of November, our program has transformed into a hot meals program. 

Read more about our hot meals program in the second part of this report. 

Dear Friend,
My colleague, Maria, was ready to post our quarterly report when we learned of the deadly attack against Israel’s countryside and cities. Now innocent people in Gaza are under massive bombing in retaliation. UNOCHA is reporting that 187,000 have fled their homes seeking refuge with over 137,000 now in UN Schools.They are not part of the Gaza Government — they did not plan or support the attack. Most have no belongings with them. Rebuilding Alliance is working with our Palestinian Non-Government Org partners in Gaza to begin our relief response starting small on credit and hoping to ramp-up as funds arrive. We appeal to your care and support to make relief efforts possible.

Here is Rebuilding Alliance’s report of how we used the donations received in May.

Sincerely,
Donna Baranski-Walker
Executive Director, Rebuilding Alliance
__________

From May 9-15, 2023, families in the Gaza Strip experienced intense bombing by the Israeli airforce. The bombing caused destruction, loss of life, and disruption of economic activity. Businesses closed down as daily life came to a standstill in Gaza. People faced many difficulties feeding their families. With your support, Rebuilding Alliance and its NGO partners in Gaza provided 200 families in need with a 2 week supply of food staples. 

On May 10th, the second day of the bombing, Rebuilding Alliance asked for a Zoom meeting with our Palestinian Non Governmental Organization (NGO) partners to learn of the needs of the Gaza community. Our partner NGOs narrated that bombings had put a large number of day laborers out of work. Without any income, people were unable to buy anything and were going hungry. On the advice of our Gaza NGO partners, we agreed to provide bags of essential food supplies to Gaza families. Because our NGO partners are located in the North and South of the Gaza Strip, they can reach many neighborhoods. 

Our NGO partners acted fast. They recommended vendors, we did OFAC checks to assure compliance with US law, they procured supplies from vendors on credit and prepared bags even when bombs were falling.  Because the situation demanded urgent attention, the only way we could provide relief was to procure food supplies from vendors on credit. One partner organized a pick-up at the local store. Other families received bags at their homes. Our goal was to serve 200 families, 50 families per partner NGO, and provide each family with a $50 bag containing staple food items, canned food, and goodies for children. One NGO Partner, Al Amal Association, chose to invite the families to a supermarket to shop using a voucher system for the designated items — this was our first experience with this system.

I want to thank everyone who provided much-needed relief to 200 beleaguered families in Gaza. Here is how your support made an impact:

• Subheya is a widow and raising six children. The bombings had left her family without sustenance. She felt helpless as she had nothing to put on the table for her hungry children. She could not believe her eyes when she saw volunteers at her doorstep with bags full of food. With tears rolling down her face, Subheya thanked the volunteers and could not find the right words to express her gratitude and relief. She felt lighter as if a huge burden was lifted off her shoulders.

• Abdul-Rahman is a ten-year-old boy. He is physically disabled and suffers from leukemia. He lives in a small shabby house with his large family of ten. The family did not have any money when the bombings started, not for food or Abdul-Rahman's medicine. It was a big relief for the family to receive essential food supplies, medicine, and diapers for Abdul-Rahman.
  
  
• On receiving a phone call from our partner NGO, Aqlaa rushed to pick up the food parcel on her donkey cart because she and her family had nothing to eat. After receiving her parcel, she lifted her hands to pray for everyone and said, "Thank you! That meant a lot to me."

• Many families shared that they were in great need of food. They had nothing to cook and had no money to buy food items. They were grateful and said the help came at the right time. 

Your generosity gave these 200 families the strength to carry on in the wake of the destruction and chaos they experienced. Thank you for making these relief efforts possible.

Sincerely,
Maria Syed
Analyst and Strategist, Rebuilding Alliance

P.S. from Donna:
The May, 2023 bombings took place just after Ramadan and Easter when RA's NGO partners delivered more food parcels than ever before. We set stretch goals for those holidays and our NGO partners in Gaza and the West Bank delivered with care — but our fundraising fell short. What a challenge Rebuilding Alliance faced to pay the bills. Thankfully, we use donations at our Gala dinner in September to complete all the payments. All vendors were paid in full and Rebuilding Alliance is in good standing once again. 

We learned how important it is to set smaller goals, then expand commitments as each fundraising goal is met.  Now in this crisis, we asked our four partners to start with food and hygiene supplies at $2500 each for a total of $10,000 of aid. They are aiding families sheltering in private homes and we’re in touch with colleagues at UNRWA who are asking for critical needs for the 137,000 people taking refuge in schools. I have every confidence in our ability to ramp up as funds arrive, review receipts and reports as work expands, and pay bills promptly when hostilities cease, hopefully very soon.