The Gabriel Love Foundation Beirut Disaster Relief is asking for donations to help Spread Life, located in Beirut.
The company has started a GoFundMe page for the effort. In an Aug. 18 email, Gabriel & Co. said it would match donations with a 1:1 contribution for the next $25,000 raised.
The goal is to raise donations for a grassroots organization that is helping to rebuild lives in Beirut following last week’s explosion. The group is providing immediate medical care, feeding the now homeless population and aiding in the recovery of the severely damaged city.
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It is estimated that over 300,000 people are now homeless in a city where a high percentage of the population was already living below the poverty level with hyperinflation created by the banking and financial meltdown, making this tragic event even worse. It is an extremely difficult time for the Lebanese people, who were already in economic crisis mode and experiencing the lack of medical services that hit the nation especially hard this year at the heels of COVID-19 pandemic, Gabriel & Co. noted in a recent email.
All donations will go directly to Spread Life, a Lebanese Christian organization helping people since 2015 with medical services, nutrition and other humanitarian needs.
“Spread Life’s story began as a personal initiative with two servants of God, Elie and Dr. Jad, who started to distribute medicine to needy families in the Mount Lebanon district,” Gabriel & Co. stated. “With the help of a small number of donors, the service expanded to hundreds of families including the Beirut District. They later added food deliveries and community pantry programs, medical programs and services, and supportive initiatives for the homeless, poor, old, or sick.”
Gabriel Love Foundation Beirut Disaster Relief fundraiser was initiated by Jack and Dominick Gabriel, co-owners of Gabriel & Co. They grew up in Beirut and are still deeply connected to their heritage and the people of Beirut.
“With the tragic news on the explosions that killed hundreds of people and left thousands injured, the Gabriel family is shocked and saddened, and wants help to raise funds directly to SpreadLife.org, an organization that offers immediate help on the ground in Beirut,” according to the email.
More information on the effort is available here.