A Syrian businesswoman living in Cork who lost a childhood friend in the Middle Eastern earthquake is now desperately trying to discover the fate of her pal's newborn baby and his older sibling.
Reham Ghefarji has been left devastated at the loss of her friend Fatma Nahhas who she only spoke to last week when she contacted her from Syria to relate her pride in Reham's new soap making business.
The 28-year old resident of Clonakilty has now pledged 100pc of all proceeds of her handmade soaps to the international appeal for victims of the earthquake which has also left her relatives in Turkey homeless and sleeping on the snow-covered streets.
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Reham had been school friends with Fatma from first class, growing up in Idlib until Reham moved to Damascus with her family to study English literature at University there.
Reham came to Ireland with her eight-year-old son Khaled in 2017, two years after her husband Wasim arrived to seek refuge and secure a job as a chef before getting them a visa under the family reunification.
"It's just a nightmare. I can't believe it how everything has changed in just a few minutes for so many families who have lost loved ones and everything they own in Turkey and Syria," she said.
"There are over 3,000 people dead in Syria and I just found out that one of my oldest and dearest friends Fatma was killed in the earthquake.
"I talked to her a few weeks ago after she had a new baby Jad and then she called me last week to tell me how proud she was of my new soap-making business and the life we had made for ourselves in Ireland. She was just so happy with her own life and her new baby and her other little boy Mohamad.
"I can't get in contact with anyone at the minute as most phones are dead because they have nowhere to charge them and electricity is out.
"I read Fatma's name among the dead on a news feed and eventually Fatma's sister messaged me to say she had died but I can't get back in touch with her to find out what happened the baby or her four-year-old. It's just so terrible. My lovely friend is gone and I'm so worried about her children.
"I know she is dead but I keep going to ring her because I just can't believe it. I just want to hear her voice again and tell me she is alive, but I know deep down, this will not happen.
"My immediate family are ok. They are in Damascus and they felt the earthquake but they are safe. It was really in the areas of Aleppo and Idlib that the tragedy struck.
"My aunt and uncle fled the war in Syria to seek refuge across the border in Turkey where they had built a good life. Now, they are alive but have lost their homes and their shops, which are completely destroyed. They are sleeping on the streets. It is snowing there and they have no food.
"My older cousins and their families are sleeping in cars at the minute and the wife of one of my cousin's is heavily pregnant. They don't know what to do. They are looking around at destruction everywhere and ongoing efforts to save more people from the rubble."
Reham is now giving 100% of all proceeds of her soaps this month towards the relief effort.
She has been operating Soap & More for the last two years and has been giving 15% of profits to homeless charities to say thank you to Ireland for giving her and her family their dream life.
"I know everyone in Ireland is struggling at the minute with their own lives and the cost of living so I decided to do this. People can spend on soap, if they like and are also giving to help the people in Turkey and Syria where urgent help is needed now."
Reham's products can be viewed on her website: www.soapandmore.ie
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