Shrouq is 8 months old, but nobigger than a newborn – only 7ozmore than her birth weight of6lbs, 10oz. The Syrian baby hasstruggled to thrive since her fam-ily fled Aleppo to find refuge inLebanon. Her fragile condition atsuch an early age puts her healthat grave risk, as the first 1,000days of a child's life are the mostcritical period of development.

IOCC health workers found

Shrouq to be suffering fromsevere acute malnutrition andbegan treating her immediatelywith highly-enriched therapeuticfood. With support from UNICEF,IOCC is working to screen 60,000at-risk Syrian refugee childrenunder the age of five, the mostvulnerable age group. IOCC community health workers evalu-ate the health of refugee childrenby measuring the upper arm

circumference using a small tapemeasure with green, yellow andred ranges. A child whose armmeasures in the red range suffersfrom severe malnutrition.

The screenings and treatmentare part of a larger effort byIOCC, a member of the ACTAlliance, to ensure the health andwell-being of Syria's youngestrefugees. Community educatorsare working in Syrian refugee settlements to teach mothersabout the importance of nutritionand encourage breastfeedingpractices in times of emergency.

I

INTERNATIONAL ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN CHARITIES

NEWS NEEDSS P E C I A L A N T I O C H I A N C O N V E N T I O N E D I T I O N • S U M M E R 2 0 1 4

SYRIA’S REFUGEE CHILDREN FACERISING RISK OF MALNUTRITION

“These young children have so manyodds against them living as refugeesin the worst of conditions, and notbeing properly nourished only magnifiestheir suffering.”

Linda Shaker-Berbari, IOCC Country Representative – Lebanon

IOCC has already identified more than 400 malnourishedchildren in the nearly 23,000 they have screened, and isproviding a treatment of specially formulated foods to improve their condition.

phot

os b

y R

yan

Eric

kson

/IOC

C

International Orthodox Christian Charities, Inc. (IOCC) is the official humanitarian aidagency of the Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of the United States of America.

IOCC, in the spirit of Christ’s love, offers emergency relief and development programs to those in need worldwide, without discrimination, and strengthens the capacity of the Orthodox Church to so respond.

This special edition of News & Needs is edited by Mark Hodde and Rada Tierney.

2

aaccttaalllliiaannccee

I N T E R N A T I O N A L O R T H O D O X C H R I S T I A N C H A R I T I E S

NEWS NEEDS

IIOOCCCC iiss aa mmeemmbbeerr ooff

Recognizing the importance of addressing not only thephysical but also the psychological needs of young and oldduring the Syrian conflict, IOCC and its church partner inSyria, the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch and Allthe East (GOPA), are providing trauma counseling to morethan 2,500 displaced and vulnerable Syrian people.

Families take part in a four-day retreat where children andthe parents engage in separate activities in a safe environ-ment. Children’s activities such as puppet making, drawingand drama are designed to help the youngsters rebuild theircommunication and interaction skills along with confidenceand trust. The children are also encouraged to strengthentheir connections with people, and to develop a strongersense of self and community. Adult participants are takenthrough activities that provide them with the necessary toolsto cope with their own stress as well as the emotional needsof their children, and to help rebuild self-confidence.

HEALING THE HIDDEN SCARS OF DISPLACED SYRIANS

Jenn

ifer

Rom

anos

/IOC

C

A COMMUNITY OASIS IN TROUBLED WEST BANKThree days a week, a small group

of elderly village women in loosefitting garb shuffle into the stretch-ing class for seniors at TaybehCommunity Center. The rest of theweek the space is used for every-thing from daycare to dance classes.Lifelong Taybeh resident and centerdirector, Abeer, 43, calls the multi-purpose facility built and equippedby IOCC an “oasis” in the WestBank village of Taybeh, about 20miles outside of Jerusalem.

Taybeh is the last all-Christiancommunity in a Muslim-dominatedregion. About 1,300 Christians stillreside in this sacred place whereChrist spent his final days, but the numbers continue to dwindle.A lack of employment and unrelenting political tension hasdriven many of the OrthodoxChristian youth to emigrate insearch of peace and prosperity.

Abeer calls the Taybeh commu-nity center a lifeline for those whostruggle to survive in isolationamid security roadblocks andrestricted access to water. “IOCChelped us to reach this point to

succeed,” she says. “Every personhas benefited from IOCC's projectin some way.” Through your support of IOCC, the center hashelped provide a welcome respitein a hostile environment.

Ori-B

en Shabat/IO

CC

3

I N T E R N A T I O N A L O R T H O D O X C H R I S T I A N C H A R I T I E S

NEWS NEEDS

Six mornings a week, threeLebanese women and two Syrianrefugee women work side by side in the Akkar communitykitchen to prepare hot meals for 240 Syrian refugee familiesscattered across northernLebanon. The cooks ladle the hotsoups or stews into more than 100 covered metal pots which will be delivered by van to Syrianrefugee families in Miniara.

Most of the refugee families who

receive the hot meals don’t havekitchens or the means to buyingredients needed to make nutri-tious meals. To help stave off thethreat of malnutrition among therefugees, IOCC equipped the com-munity kitchen and trained thewomen hired as cooks to preparemeals in large quantities. IOCCnutrition experts oversee the dailymenu to ensure a balanced diet for the refugees.

Amid the bustle, Samar, 40, a

Syrian refugee who fled Homseight months ago with her husband and six children, reflectson her life now. “We had a decentlife in Homs, but then war cameand took everything.” The com-munity kitchen not only helpsnourish Samar’s children, thewages she receives for workingthere also help sustain the familywith desperately needed income.Samar’s Lebanese coworker,Zeina, 40, understands her pain all too well.

Zeina’s hospitality and empathyare vital to the well-being ofSyrian refugees in Lebanon. The kitchen helps reduce the burden shouldered by thousandsof Lebanese families whose communities have been hostingSyrian refugees since the civil conflict began three years ago.

COMMUNITY KITCHEN NOURISHES SYRIAN REFUGEE FAMILIES

“We endured war for 30 years here inLebanon. I know what they are going

through, and I want to help. I want them tohave hope and not lose faith in humanity.”

Zeina, Lebanese cook

Rya

n Er

icks

on/IO

CC

Barbara, 70, spent more than 40 years creating acomfortable home in the coastal town of Brick, NewJersey, for her family. It took only a few minutes inOctober 2012 for surging waters from SuperstormSandy to flood her modest bungalow and obliterate a lifetime of hard work and treasured belongings.

Her neighbor John, 80, a retired naval seaman,barely escaped his home. Volunteers working aspart of IOCC “Orthodox Action Teams” assistedSandy survivors like Barbara and John in rebuildingtheir storm-damaged homes. “I am so thankful for the help of good people like IOCC,” saidBarbara. “They helped put a roof back over myhead,” added John. For information on how you can join an Orthodox Action Team this summer,visit: iocc.org/actionteams.

A PLACE TO CALL HOME AGAIN • SINCE 2005 •800 IOCC VOLUNTEERS

30,000 MAN HOURS169 FAMILY HOMES

REBUILT OR REPAIRED

Christina M

eares/IOC

C

Intense fighting in Kassab, apredominantly ArmenianChristian town in northwesternSyria, forced hundreds of familiesto flee for their lives to Lattakia 36 miles away. Working fromtheir office in Lattakia, IOCC and church partner, the GreekOrthodox Patriarchate of Antiochand All the East (GOPA) respond-ed to the most urgent needs ofthe families, many of whom havebeen displaced multiple times.

An IOCC/GOPA rapidresponse team provided 720 dis-placed families with emergencyshelter at a local school andbasic necessities such as hygienekits, bedding, clothing, diapersand kitchen sets. The sheltercontinues as a school by day,

and IOCC/GOPA is helping displaced school children stayon track with school supplies,tutoring and remedial classes

taught by teachers displacedfrom Kassab.

“I don’t have anything todepend on to survive,” saidSantic, a woman who fled Kassaband is now living at the schoolshelter. “Without your help Icould be sleeping in the street.”IOCC, an ACT Alliance member,is also providing 100 displacedSyrians like Santic with traumacounseling to help them copewith the stress and uncertainty ofbeing uprooted repeatedly.

More than six million peoplehave been displaced by the civilwar in Syria over the past threeyears. IOCC/GOPA is among avery few humanitarian organiza-tions working inside Syria to aid families living in some of themost volatile regions.

I N T E R N A T I O N A L O R T H O D O X C H R I S T I A N C H A R I T I E S

NEWS NEEDSI

IOCC ASSISTS DISPLACED SYRIANS FLEEING EMBATTLED KASSAB

Rasha Kaba/IO

CC

JORDAN

LEBANON

ARMENIA

SYRIA

IRAQ

Since 2012, nearly 1.5 million displaced Syrian people and those living asrefugees in Jordan, Lebanon, Iraq and Armenia have received humanitarianassistance from IOCC. The generous annual support of the Order of St. Ignatius makes it possible for IOCC to reach the world’s most vulnerable with critical, lifesaving assistance in their time of greatest need.

p

Scan here for more aboutIOCC’s response in Syria.