Social media saves Syrian refugee

When Gissur Simonarson, an activist from Oslo, Norway, posted a photo on his twitter of a father selling pens on the streets of Beirut as he cradled his sleeping daughter, he struck a chord with more than 6,000 followers.

Requests came offering to help the man, but Simonarson didn’t know the man or even who took the  picture. That’s where social media came in, with the activists asking others to help Simonarson locate the anonymous pen seller with #BuyPens on twitter and other social media websites.

Many activists came together to help locate him, which they did eventually. After finding him, Simonarson set up a crowdfunding page urging users to collect $5,000 for the struggling family of three, the father Abdul, and his two children, after fleeing their home in Yarmouk, Syria.

In 24 hours, nearly 3,000 people had raised more than $80,000. Abdul says he can finally send his two children to school with the money. The 35-year-old, who once worked at a chocolate factory before war broke out in his native Syria, also says he wants to help other refugees with the donated money.

He is one of 4 million registered refugees, many struggling to survive across Turkey, Jordan and Lebanon.