Learning to Listen, Learning to Grow: A Family’s Journey with LIFT
LIFT is the place where my daughters found their voices and where I learned to listen.”
At the LIFT Center in Gaziantep, Syrian and Turkish children learn side by side—blending, bonding, and building harmony together.
World Vision Syria Response/ Samer Asaid
Finding a Place That Welcomed Everyone
When Mohammed*, a Syrian refugee living in Gaziantep, first heard about World Vision’s LIFT program, , he never expected it to become a turning point for his entire familyThe LIFT program offers a unique holistic approach that covers response caregiving, security and safety, learning opportunities, mental health and PSS, and agency and resilience for both caregivers and children. He learned about the centre from his wife, Amina* (44), who regularly took their 5-year-old twins to the Early Age Group (EAG) sessions. The centre was close to their home and each evening, the children returned home excited, sharing stories of joyful learning, new activities, and the warmth of the community they found there.
This made Mohammad eager to join. “At first, I wasn’t sure I belonged there,” Mohammed admitted. “I imagined it was only for mothers and children.” Amina remembers his hesitation as well sharing, “my husband was unwell then. He couldn’t work, and he spent long days at home trying to stay hopeful. One day he said, ‘If you want, I can join the centre.’ But I wasn’t sure, I thought maybe they wouldn’t accept a father.”
Everything changed the day the family received an invitation to a community event where fathers were welcome. Mohammed joined, a simple step that would reshape his life.
“When I walked into LIFT, I saw children laughing and learning,” said Mohammad. “Everyone spoke Arabic. I felt respected, seen, and understood.”
For the first time in years, he felt that he belonged somewhere.
You see, before LIFT, the family went through so much hardships after they fled crisis in Syria and arrived in Türkiye in 2015. They didn’t have a stable home, they stayed with friends, or wherever they could afford, which have impacted them and their children heavily.
Their eldest, 13-year-old Lucyen*, was withdrawn. Their twins had no access to early learning, and one twin, born with one arm, needed additional support.
“Even when the children were sick,” Mohammed recalled quietly, “we had to depend on strangers. We were surviving, not truly living.”
Transformation Begins
Once the family became involved in LIFT, the change was unmistakable.
“After I started coming to the centre and became involved in the response caregiving sessions, I began to see my children differently,” Mohammed said. “They weren’t just little girls who needed care, they were individuals with their own thoughts, dreams, and talents.”
Amina noticed the same shift at home. “He became a much more active, happy, and involved parent,” she said. “He started drawing with Lucyen. After each session, he’d come home with new ideas making playdough, playing football, doing crafts. He even brought the warm-up games he learned at LIFT to our living room! It means a lot to her. She sees a calmer, more patient father. They draw together and play the games he learned at the center. Their bond has grown stronger.”
Their home, once quiet and tense, became alive with laughter and color. The girls spent less time on screens and more time together. “Now we make juice and prepare dinner as a family,” Amina smiled. “Even the twins take part.” Communication changed too. “We no longer rush decisions. now everyone’s voice matters, even choosing what to cook”.
But the shift was also noticed on their eldest daughter, “She used to be shy,” Amina recalled. But after LIFT she started saying, ‘I have a voice too”. That confidence came from her father’s support.”
Breaking Norms, Building Bonds
Usually, it is rare for fathers to join child development activities. But Mohammed’s involvement began changing perceptions of others.
“At first, I thought people might judge him,” Amina said. “But seeing him in the LIFT center made me proud. Our daughters were proud too.” Lucyen, their eldest, now tells her friends that her father attends LIFT.
Mohammed’s transformation also changed his views on parenting and gender roles. “In the past, I was strict about my daughters going out or my wife working,” he said. “But now, I see things differently. I trust my daughters more. I encourage my wife to work. LIFT made me more open-minded, it opened my heart.”
A Ripple That Reaches Beyond Their Home
The family’s journey didn’t stop at the center’s doors as;
Amina built connections with neighbors.
Mohammed strengthened trust with his daughters.
Lucyen became more confident and expressive.
The twins entered kindergarten prepared and excited.
“The sessions became more than weekly activities, they became tools for healing, leadership, and restored hope. LIFT is the place where my daughters found their voices and where I found mine too.”, the mother concludes.
World Vision Syria Response/ Samer Asaid
The children and parents continuously engaged with the sessions held once per week, lasting four months, creating lasting change.
Life in Fullness Together (LIFT) is World Vision’s holistic program for promoting child and adolescent wellbeing. It was Piloted in Türkiye in late 2023 as part of the Earthquake Response.
LIFT co-creates nurturing spaces that respond to the complex, layered experiences of children and adolescents in crisis, actively supporting healing, learning, leadership, and positive family and social relationships throughout the life journey of a child.