1038 Noor

 

Several years ago, I began The Innocents Project, my personal effort to raise awareness of the refugee children in the Middle East and the difficulties they face.  I do this also to raise awareness to the good work provided by ANERA.  Noor's portrait is one of the 30-plus portraits I have painted so far.   It's been quite a while since the last portrait, and judging by this one, I am very rusty. I always have trouble with the skin tone and this one was no exception. 

ANERA, which stands for American Near East Refugee Aid, is an American nonprofit that provides educational, medical, and so much more to refugee families in Lebanon and Palestine.  Because only one-third of four and five year olds participate in preschool,  early childhood education is one of ANERA's priorities for  these children during the important formative period.  Noor is a student at the Madama Preschool in the West Bank where ANERA has established the Right Start program, which supports West Bank and Gaza preschools and community organizations.  The Right Support program also gives teachers and parents the tools they need to ensure a healthy future for their children.

ANERA's web site is www.anera.org.  If you would like to learn more about what is provided by this fine organization and what is needed,  please check it out, and if you are so moved, make a donation.

978 Powerful Forces

If you have been following my painting journey, you know a few things about me.  Surely you must know that I am not a portrait artist and that I am self taught in that genre.  You also must know that I passionately paint Palestinian refugee children's portraits to bring awareness and attention to a non-profit, non-political organization, ANERA,  American Near East Refugee Aid.  This is my 27th portrait in the series of The Innocence Project.

I was prepared to write about women and girls in Palestine, Lebanon, Jordan, Syria being a powerful force in their communities as breadwinners, providers, and role models---areas that ANERA serves.

But if we think we have it bad here in the United States, it is absolutely a walk in the park compared to Palestinian refugees in any of these countries, particularly in Lebanon.  Here is a quote from ANERA'S blog about the conditions in Lebanon:

"All of Lebanon is now on two hours of electricity per day. Randomly coming on and off. It used to be more scheduled. Morale is down in the whole country. There continue to be demonstrations in the streets. The army is more visible. The value of the Lebanese pound continues its downward slide. There are shortages in basics, like medicines. Many shops are not even selling items because they don’t know what price to charge. It’s chaotic. People are rushing to buy stuff and stock up in their homes."

The situation is worsening every day for the 1.7 million Palestinian and Syrian refugees in Lebanon.  Conditions have been terrible, unemployments rates are high and people have very little access to education and health care.  The ANERA Country Director in Lebanon reports that despite the resiliency of the people, there is a sense of despair, fear, and hopelessness.  The World Food Program estimates that 83% of the Syrian refugees in Lebanon are living in crushing poverty.  

Thankfully the virus hasn't spiked in Lebanon but the numbers are rising.  ANERA provides valuable disinfection kits with bleach, soap and laundry detergent, as well as hygiene kits.  They also provide food, and important medicines like cancer and chronic disease medications.

There is SO much more I could tell you about ANERA and the great work they do to bring dignity and improved living conditions, education, educational programs, etc. but I know you would gain much more by looking at their website, www.ANERA.org.  I know you will be impressed.  If you are so moved, please make a donation to ANERA and I promise you it will be well spent.  If possible, mention The Innocents Project 

Thanks for your consideration.

https://www.dailypaintworks.com/fineart/diane-campion/978-powerful-forces/812905

936 The Environmentalist

Via Anera's February 11 Facebook video, I was introduced to this 12-year old Palestinian, Hatem, who lives in Burj Shemali Refugee camp in South Lebanon.  I was taken aback by his poise and enthusiasm in explaining how Anera works to promote environmentalism and good hygiene in Lebanon.  Hatem attends one of UNRWA's schools and in addition to conducting a tour of his school, he explained that Anera helped clean the area in just 3 days, and collected 60,000 bottle caps, which were later used in an art installation.

Anera conducts a series of awareness sessions at schools "to change attitudes and behaviors around littering, pollution, recycling, sorting waste at source and composting.  Anera has designed and rolled out a year-long plan, through which these core themes are communicated to young children in an interactive and fun way.  The long term goal is to help shape the youth in Lebanon regarding the environment."

This program is funded by UNICEF and implemented by Anera.  As you may know, I am devoted to Anera and the great work they do in SO many ways to improve lives of refugees in Lebanon, Palestine, Syria and Jordan.  This is one of nearly three dozen portraits I have painted of Palestinian Refugee children in my effort to raise awareness of Anera's good work, which I firmly believe in.

Please consider making a donation to Anera, and mention The Innocents Project.  www.anera.org

https://www.dailypaintworks.com/fineart/diane-campion/936-the-environmentalist/756770

926 Moving Forward

This painting is the 33rd of a series, The Innocents Project, which was designed to raise awareness of the good work that American Near East Refugee Aid (ANERA) provides to refugees in the Middle East.  I do not work for ANERA, but I strongly believe in the work they do and I support them, and I encourage you to support them too.

Despite the United States complete withdrawal of aid totaling $500M for Palestinian relief, ANERA.org finds ways to serve refugees in Lebanon, Jordan and Palestine and to restore some sense of dignity to them.  Unfortunately, with these cuts ANERA had to cut two-thirds of their valued staff in Palestine, which was very difficult to do.

The impact of the U.S. funding cuts, according to ANERA:
"57,000 people in Gaza will not have access to reliable water;
Two communities in the West Bank are without new schools; (the little girl in this painting is from the West Bank);
119,800 people lost access to vital medicines and health care;
16,000 breast cancer patients no longer have access to treatment in Gaza;
150,000 Palestinians in Gaza lost immediate food and vocational assistance'
1.3 million Palestinians are at risk of losing aid and jobs due to the funding cuts."

All of this sounds hopeless to me, but ANERA somehow comes through, and despite these funding cuts, ANERA is managing to deliver 28 shipments of medicine and supplies for Palestinian patients, they are building seven new preschools in the West Bank, improving water and sanitation for almost 28,000 residents, and are installing greenhouses on 91 Gaza farmers' land.  This and so much more.

I encourage you to read about all the good work that ANERA does.  You can read their extensive report on the funding cuts here:  https://www.anera.org/blog/on-the-ground-u-s-funding-cuts-to-palestine/?utm_source=link&utm_medium=email&utm_content=aneraenews&utm_campaign=enews-june19&s_src=aneraenews&s_subsrc=enews-june19

www.anera.org

I would love it if you would consider making a donation, and if so, please mention The Innocents Project.  Thanks for your consideration.

https://www.dailypaintworks.com/fineart/diane-campion/926-moving-forward/747921

888. Now More Than Ever

This little girl captured my attention (and my heart) because she looks so familiar.  She looks just like I did as a child!  I wish I could locate the photo to prove it to you.  The point is this:  this little girl and the other Palestinian and Syrian refugees could be your child or grandchild or mine,  and the children deserve more than their current living conditions and fate.

In my opinion, the refugee situation in Palestine is not going to be improving any time soon.   More and more families are left homeless because of the occupation and the recent decision to move the American Embassy to Jerusalem.  Important funds have been cut by the United States that were earmarked for the Palestinians, who are living in occupation.   Organizations that provide aid, such as ANERA (American Near East Refugee Aid, Washington, D.C.) are even more important to the refugees now during these times.

ANERA and its partners are determined to give some semblance of dignity to the refugees, as well as crucial medical assistance, improved water systems, education, distribution of important goods, etc.
In December 2017 alone, ANERA distributed 96,000 pairs of Tom's shoes to Palestinian and Syrian children in the Beddawi camp and in informal tented settlements of Lebanon.

Here are a few more facts about ANERA's 2017 statistics:
-ANERA distributed 50 - 40 foot containers of donated medicines;
-100,000 Palestinians were connected to reliable water sources;
-With ANERA's assistance, 8, 658 children returned to school in Lebanon alone;
-22 schools in Gaza and the West Bank were renovated
-94% of ANERA's revenue was spent on programs in Palestine and Lebanon.

The time to step up is now to provide assistance to these organizations.  I hope you will consider making a donation to ANERA in honor of The Innocents Project, my independent effort to raise awareness and funds for these precious children.  Please learn all about the services they lovingly provide at https://www.anera.org/   Thank you for your consideration.

"888  Now More Than Ever"
acrylic - 12x12 in

https://www.dailypaintworks.com/fineart/diane-campion/888--now-more-than-ever/647022

861 Thirsty for a Better Life

No child should have to live under the conditions in which refuge children exist in Lebanon, Palestine and Jordan.  There is not enough of the basic necessities---water, electricity, food, medical supplies, etc. to supply to the refugee families, but because of ANERA's valiant efforts, nearly 134,000 Palestinians have been given access to reliable water supplies, including this little guy.  For four decades, ANERA has worked to manage sewage and give better access to clean water in the Middle East.  You can read more about their efforts to improve the water crisis here:
https://www.anera.org/what-we-do/water/

This is my 15th painting of a refugee child for my personal effort, The Innocents Project.  Please consider making a donation to ANERA to support their efforts on behalf of refugee families and please mention The Innocents Project.
www.anera.org

"861 Thirsty for a Better Life"
acrylic - 12x12 in

http://www.dailypaintworks.com/fineart/diane-campion/861-thirsty-for-a-better-life/586327

844 Will You Be My Valentine?

A very wise woman,  my mentor, always said it was the kiss of death to fall in love with your painting.  (It really was a tough lesson to learn.)   But she never said I shouldn't fall in love with my subject.  This little angel stole my heart at first glance.

Her name is Safaa.  I don't always know the child's name when I paint the refugees ANERA serves, and the more information I have about each child, the more intimate the painting experience.  I don't know anything about her, other than she is probably Palestinian or Syrian living in Lebanon, Palestine or Jordan, so I just imagine what her life is like, and what it could be when I am painting her.   She probably lives in a makeshift refugee camp where heat is nonexistent.  If she is lucky, ANERA provides her with a preschool to attend, and warm boots provided by Toms, and emergency lights. Hopefully she has the medical supplies she needs and clean water, all provided by ANERA.

ANERA (American Near East Refugee Aid) is a non-political non-profit headquartered in Washington, D.C.  They are committed to providing not only aid to families in the Middle East, but to giving them as much dignity as possible.  These ANERA folks are angels too.

If you are so moved, please consider making a donation to ANERA at www.anera.org.

"844 Will You Be My Valentine?"
acrylic - 12x12 in

http://www.dailypaintworks.com/fineart/diane-campion/844-will-you-be-my-valentine/561749