That's exciting! My parish's Antiochian Women group always picks projects that actually help kids or families in need—can't wait to hear the details for 2026. What are they thinking of this time?
My daughter is just at the age when such projects for children are especially important. I wonder what exactly they will choose for 2026–2027—again, something about helping families or schools? I'll wait for the details.
I also love that the projects are geared toward kids and families. In our group here in Damascus, we once chose a project to distribute school books to poor children, and it had a great impact. Wait for new details for 2026.
It's good that they say it for the children and families, because our own daughter also helped with a similar program last year with school supplies. Let's see what they pick for 2026-2027, hopefully something practical like the books Kayla from Damascus mentioned. I'll wait to hear.
I liked Carla's mention of handing out school books to poor children in Damascus - it's a really practical thing to do. Here in Odessa, women also often collect textbooks and notebooks for schoolchildren from large families. I expect that Antiochian Women will be chosen for 2026-2027, so that something useful for children will be done again.
Our group's been doing the same thing for years—last summer we collected school supplies for a parish in Ohio that helps immigrant families. Carla's story about handing out textbooks in Damascus sounds exactly like that, practical stuff that actually gets used. Looking forward to the 2026-2027 pick.
In our church group, we also often collect textbooks for large families. It's pleasant to hear that Carla from Damascus shared about distributing books to poor children — this is exactly what really works. I am looking forward to seeing what the Antiochian Women choose for 2026–2027, and I hope it will be something equally practical.
I agree, Niko, school supplies are one of the most useful things they can send. My own neighbor last year gave notebooks and pencils to children in Syria and she was telling me how much they needed them. Let's hope they stick to something this specific next year. What do you say, shall we discuss it in the parish?
Yes, distributing textbooks is an excellent idea and really leaves a lasting impact.
In Homs, we did something similar two years ago for high school students, and we noticed that the students became more committed to studying.
What do you think if the new project included a special section for religious books for children along with regular books?
Yes, Bohdan, handing out textbooks is something that really helps. For several years, our parish also collected notebooks and satchels for children whose parents could not always buy them. I wonder if Antiochian Women will take on Syrian schoolchildren again, or this time they will choose something closer to themselves.
Yes, Christos, notebooks and pencils are indeed among the most practical. Last year when we went with the parish to a mountain near Agios Nikolaos, a lady from there showed us how many children come to school with nothing. Let's put it in our parish too, how about we propose some bags too?
