Their office is a small workshop on the ground floor of the Lebanese Red Cross headquarters in Beirut. It is stacked high with piles of cardboard and paper of different sizes. There is a distinct smell of glue and paint, and the concrete floor outside bears marks of their work. It has become a mosaic of colors, but it is not hard to tell that their last creation ended up purple.

Work that inspires

The last four years they have spent turning common cardboard into money for the Red Cross. By using only waste cardboard and glue, they can make almost anything! Their product range includes anything from bookshelves and chairs to crutches and walkers for the injured or handicapped. Abdullah and Adnan are both electronics engineers, but have been working with the Red Cross for almost twenty years.

In addition to their work in the workshop, they offer services to the handicapped to have their house or apartment customized to make their life at home just a little bit easier. Being polio victims themselves, Adnan says they are better able to understand the situation of other handicapped people, and to see what they need. “Also,” he continues, “it is good for other handicapped to see me and Abdullah working and helping them. It boosts their spirits and makes it easier to face the future as a handicapped.”

Trusted by everyone

During the four years they have been doing this work, it has become a major source of income for the Medical Social Department of the Lebanese Red Cross, Madame Jaber explains. She is the director of the department, and tells us its proud history. It is the oldest in the Lebanese Red Cross, dating back to 1948 and the Israeli-Palestine war. Their first task was caring for Palestinian refugees, but during the following decades their responsibilities grew.

During and after the civil war from 1975 to 1990, the Lebanese Red Cross was the only organization providing medical care to the Lebanese people. This established an immense trust amongst the Lebanese people. Even today, the Medical Social Department is where people go if they are in need of medical attention or medicines. There are over 50 Red Cross clinics around the country; ten of them are mobile clinics in order to reach also people in remote areas. They even have specialized centers doing mammography and osteoporosis examinations, and are planning a psychological support clinic.

Getting stronger

As in any organization, money is always an issue in the Medical Social Department of the Lebanese Red Cross. Shifting governments in the post-war years have not improved this situation, thus creating a great dependence of the Red Cross Societies of other nations. Their goal is to be self-supported, but it is still a long road ahead. Nevertheless, the road has become a little bit shorter - thanks to two electrical engineers who spend every day turning soft cardboard into hard cash.