Beirut explosion: one year later.

Meet some people whose homes and businesses were restored with the help of MCC and partner Forum for Development, Culture and Dialogue (FDCD), a Lebanese non-profit organization.
 
Samir Menassa remembers when his convenience store used to attract many customers. Located among pubs and restaurants in Beirut, Lebanon, the store was a convenient place for people to purchase a few things they needed as they strolled through the area.
 
That memory blew up along with a massive explosion of ammonium nitrate at the city’s major port on Aug. 4, 2020. The explosion killed about 200 people and destroyed and damaged buildings throughout the city.
 
With only $400 in his bank account, he looked for help to fix his store and his house, which also was damaged. Through his church, he was connected to Forum for Development, Culture and Dialogue (FDCD), a Lebanese non-profit organization.
 
Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) and FDCD have worked together to help repair 55 homes and 14 businesses with stipends of about $1,250 each. Other non-profits also support recovery in different ways, allowing people to combine varied resources with their own to restart.
 
“Helping families get back into their homes as soon as possible was an essential part of supporting their efforts to begin earning livelihoods again. In the same way we wanted to focus on rebuilding small businesses because, for many families, their small businesses are their primary—or even only—source of income.”
 
MCC - Relief, development, and peace in the name of Christ
 
https://mcccanada.ca/stories/beirut-explosion-one-year-late