Because of You, Alaa Has New Purpose

Alaa’s early childhood was shaped by painful uncertainty. His parents divorced when he was very young, and shortly after, his father remarried. With the changes at home and the instability that followed, Alaa was brought to live at Kids Alive Lebanon, a place that—though unfamiliar at first—quickly became his refuge.

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For most of his childhood, Alaa believed his mother had passed away. His father had told him this so he would not ask to see her. And during weekend visits with his father, Alaa often spent long hours outside on the stairs because his stepmother preferred to remove her veil in the home and did not want him inside.

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Fifteen years passed before the truth finally surfaced. One day, a neighbor quietly handed him a phone and said, “Talk to your mom.”

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Alaa’s world shifted in an instant—his mom was alive, living abroad, and longing to reconnect.

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A Safe Place to Heal

While his father’s home never felt welcoming during those early years, Kids Alive Lebanon became the first place where Alaa felt seen, valued, and safe. The staff surrounded him with patient love and consistent care, helping him process the confusion and rejection he carried.

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Denise, the Country Director for Lebanon, remembers the journey well.

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“Alaa came to us as a boy who had carried far more pain than any child should. Over the years I watched him discover who he was—slowly healing, slowly growing in confidence, slowly embracing the truth that he mattered.”

She saw firsthand the long arc of his transformation.

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A New Identity and a New Purpose

Today, Alaa is a confident young man studying Physical Education at university. He loves playing football and dreams of using sports to mentor younger youth, just as he was mentored.

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One of the most significant turning points in his life has been spiritual. Coming from a non-Christian background, choosing to follow Jesus was not easy. When he shared his new faith with his mother years ago, she initially rejected him.

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But even that chapter is being rewritten.

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Now, as a young adult, Alaa is grateful that God is gently restoring his relationship with both of his parents. What was once painful and fractured is slowly healing in ways that only grace can explain.

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Alaa continues to show love to his family, serve in his church, and mentor younger boys at Kids Alive Lebanon—the very place that helped shape him.

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Because of you, a boy who once felt forgotten discovered a home, a purpose, and a future filled with hope.

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Give now to help healing happen and hope grow!

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