Communication is Key

The Lebanese Organization of Studies and Trainings (LOST) is six months in to its project "Food Security for Vulnerable Families" funded by Mennonite Central Committee (MCC).

During a workshop on September 23rd, 2015 under the life skills category, LOST gave training on child care and the psychology of child. One week later a Lebanese participant named Nada Sarout a 40-year-old mother with three kids, Ali (5), Mohammed (11) and Khawla (12) shared her thoughts on the training. Sarout takes care of her husband as well as her children. Her husband experienced a stroke that had left his whole left side of the body immobile and so he is unable to provide for his children. Influenced by the workshop she said, "I am used to just smacking my kids [especially my youngest] when they do something wrong before giving them the chance to speak. After learning about methods to understand children, I have stopped using the old methods with them."

"I now ask them what is wrong and try to understand the problem; it makes more sense to communicate because hitting isn’t getting us anywhere."

This project aims at empowering women by distributing sheep to the most vulnerable Lebanese families. Thus Lebanese women become assistant head of households by increasing the income generation to provide for their children. The Food Security project also bonds Lebanese and Syrian Refugee women to coexist peacefully through life skills and peace building workshops. The sheep Sarout owns now has a little lamb offspring.

In addition, the Syrian and Lebanese women attending the workshop created a Whatsapp group to communicate throughout the week.