Nahla came to Aleppo through an arranged marriage. During the first few years of marriage, she had her first three children.

In Aleppo she worked as a house cleaner, but it was hard to provide for her family as the money she earned could not meet all their needs. She injured her back and then her husband became unhappy with her being employed and they got a divorce. Nahla was left to care for her four children.

Before the conflict and the earthquake, all her children attended school. Her sons were in Grades 9 and 7, and her daughters are in boarding school at a mosque. Although her daughters are continuing their studies, her sons dropped out of school to work to help meet the family’s needs.

When the earthquake struck on 6 February 2023, Nahla’s house was destroyed. With no relatives close by, she was assigned to the Omar Abu Risha collective shelter where she stayed with her children in a single room. Nahla is thankful that her children are alive, but the effects of the earthquake took a toll on her. She feels that she has lost some of her memories since the emergency.

When ADRA’s RELIEF project began at her shelter, Nahla was approved to be a part of the Cash for Work program. Since she began working again, she feels free and hopeful. Before ADRA came to her shelter, she was worried and depressed because she did not know how she would provide for her family. Now, that burden has been lightened. Nahla has found independence and purpose through the Cash for Work program.

Nahla knows very well the struggles of providing for her family with limited resources. However, she is determined that each of her children will have a good life. She says, “each mother needs to fight for her children.
Keep fighting!”