History and Background of the Organization

Bassam Foundation for Children and Youth was founded in March 2023 by Dina Al Hidiq in memory of her late father Bassam Al Hidiq, who passed away in Canada on the 24th of December, 2022.

 

The name ‘Bassam’ in Arabic means ‘the smiling one’, and indeed he was always smiling and had a soul that was filled with positivity, optimism, love and kindness his whole life. He was a charitable man and always found ways to help the needy in any way he could. He believed that humans are all capable of giving and helping, no matter how much or how little they had. He also believed that people had the power in their hands to carve a better future no matter what their circumstances were. He encouraged his children to always be proactive and valuable contributors to society in any way they could. He taught them to be honorable, ambitious and problem solvers, and to never give up. “No matter how many times you fail, you have to get up and try again. When there is a will, there is always a way,” were some of his famous inspirational words.

 

Bassam was born in 1943 in Acre, Palestine, with Turkish, Lebanese and European roots from both sides of his parents. He was forced to flee with his family in the 1948 Nakba, which marks the beginning of an entire life of challenges for him and his family. He fled with his parents, teenage brother and two teenage sisters. His adult brother stayed behind to fight for their home and land, but was killed shortly after by Israeli soldiers. His adult sister who was married stayed behind and lived in Nazareth with her husband and children.

 

Bassam and his family settled in Sidon in the south of Lebanon and held Palestinian Refugee status. His sisters got married and one moved to the north of Lebanon, and the other moved to Kuwait. His brother got married and first lived in Lebanon and then moved to Jordan. Bassam was the youngest in his family. He was fortunate that his father was financially well-off and was socially well-connected, so Bassam was given top-notch educational opportunities where he graduated from the American high school in Sidon, and then from an American university in Ankara, Turkey. His education, ambition, personality along with his father’s international social connections gave him the opportunity to work in the Kuwait Oil Company, securing a financially stable life for him and his future family.

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Bassam met the love of his life, Ghada Kaakani, shortly after he had moved to Kuwait. He was vacationing in Lebanon and visiting his sister's vacation mountain house, while Ghada was also staying in her family's vacation mountain house nearby. They met during a social gathering at Bassam's sister's home, and they fell right in love from the very first moment. They got married and Ghada moved to Kuwait where they lived happily together and started a family.

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However, with the years, the political situation around the globe got worse and worse for those who carried Palestinian travel documents and had refugee status. Following the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, Palestinians were laid off from their work in the Kuwait Oil Company, forcing Bassam to travel and settle in Beirut, Lebanon with his Lebanese wife and four children. Rules and labour laws became stricter and more rigid for the Palestinian refugees, and in Lebanon it was no exception. People with Palestinian travel documents in Lebanon did not enjoy any human rights, suffered discrimination, and were denied work and medical care. So, if people couldn't afford to pay for their basic human rights, they were denied them.

 

Bassam made sure to provide the best educational opportunities for his children, so that no great obstacles would be in their way, because he knew that they already had the greatest obstacle of carrying refugee status in Lebanon, even though their mother was Lebanese. He urged his children to study hard, earn many degrees, become experts and specialists in what they were passionate about, and travel to seek a better life in other countries because he saw how hopeless it was for Palestinians to live a life with dignity in Lebanon or in the Middle East.

 

His second-born daughter, Dina, founder, president and managing director of the organization, settled in Belgium with her husband and two boys, and they are Belgian citizens. His eldest daughter, Lulwa, settled in Canada with her husband and three children, and they are Canadian citizens. Bassam’s eldest son, Salah, settled in Canada with his wife and Canadian born daughter. His youngest son, Ahmad, a Canadian citizen, settled in Canada with his wife and Canadian born daughter.

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Bassam moved to Canada with his wife, Ghada, in September 2021 to spend the rest of his time surrounded by his children and grandchildren. His wish was to be buried in Canada after his death, because it was only Canada that made him live in peace, and did not discriminate against him based on the type of travel document he had. Ghada is now a permanent resident of Canada.

 

The founder of the organization, Dina, decided to start this foundation in memory of her late father because he was the one who always encouraged her to dream of making the world a better place. He saw Dina’s talent and dream of becoming a writer and educator at the age of eight, so he published her first book for her to encourage her to pursue her dreams.

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Now, Dina has three published books and continues to write and help others. Her love for the written word that was encouraged and inspired by her late father, as well as her humanitarian soul that was grown in her by her father, gave her this dream to start the ‘Bassam Foundation for Children and Youth’ that will give a healing voice for the children and youth of refugees, asylum seekers, migrants, war victims and disaster survivors to allow them to heal, build a brighter future, and have their stories heard by the rest of the world.