Since l985, the Hariri Foundation-USA has funded thousands of students for their undergraduate and postgraduate education in North America and Canada. This funding was in the form of interest-free loans with legal and moral understanding that the Hariri Foundation alumni would repay their loans after completion of their academic training in the United States. Loan repayments would then be recycled to educate other deserving Lebanese students who would otherwise not be able to attend schools or universities.
It was the intention of our founder Mr. Rafik B. Hariri that the proceeds from the loan repayment program play an integral role in supporting educational programs of the Foundation. Therefore, the Foundation encourages all its alumni to repay their loans, and it takes great pride in the dedication and commitment of all those participating in its loan repayment program. In accordance with Mr. Hariri’s vision, the funds collected through this program are used to pay the expenses of short-term training programs for high school and university participants from Lebanon. In past years, these funds have been used to support students attending the Hariri administered schools in Lebanon. The Foundation also used these funds to sponsor Lebanese high school students at the World Youth Leadership Congress and continues to support such students at the Research Science Institute during the summer.
For inquiries about loan repayment or to add your own testimonial to our website, please contact Ms. Christiane G. Buck at: CBuck@hfusa.org
Testimonials from Hariri Foundation alumni:
“Life is about fulfilling commitments. Repaying the Hariri Foundation loan is a commitment I have made in order to thank the Foundation for the opportunity to continue my education. In addition, I would like to contribute along with the Foundation in helping the needy and in rebuilding Lebanon.” Misbah Kabbara
“We grow up in life and aspire to achieve our goals. In Lebanon, a country where we have gone through immense hardships and where opportunities are hard to come by, setting goals, let alone pursuing them, is a luxury. The Foundation provided me with the opportunity to attain my doctorate – a life-long dream! So, paying back the loan is my way to help provide others, through the Foundation, with the same opportunity to go after their dream goals.” Micheline Chalhoub
“It has been difficult making my monthly loan repayment especially when my responsibilities have been increased three-fold to include my wife and my two kids. However, when I had known that the money generated from the loan repayments is being recycled to help other needy students, I became even more determined to make my monthly loan repayment. Furthermore, a contract requiring paying back the loan to the Hariri Foundation is a binding legal document which should be honored and fulfilled.” Imad Bdeiri
“So much I owe and yet so little to give back. Like many of the Hariri Scholars, I always wanted to repay the Foundation by giving back the loan in full and even more to say a heartfelt ‘thank you’. This thought, I would always have until it becomes reality. For some this might have already happened; but in my personal case it has not been easy making the payments. Moving to a new country, finding a job in my field, being the only working person in a family of five, moving again to look for better job opportunities, maintaining two homes, all made repaying the loan seem impossible. Throughout all that period, I kept in touch with the Foundation, not so often I admit, to keep them up-to-date with my situation. It’s been almost a year now since I started making regular monthly payments. Every month, writing my loan repayment check is a blissful moment mixed with pride in my work, a moment where gratitude translates into numbers. Even more so now, knowing that the loan repayment fund will be used to provide financial support to the school for needy children in Lebanon is giving this moment a new meaning. Somehow, I, a Hariri Scholar, will be indirectly joining in the “Giving to Build Lebanon’ dream of the one person behind it all. The opportunity to gain the wealth of knowledge will be given to those children, help their parents, and improve the future of Lebanon, and I, with my little monthly payments, am helping to keep the doors of opportunity open…Strangely, writing numbers on my check does not seem enough anymore, so here is my message: Heartfelt thanks for giving us the gift of giving; heartfelt thanks for giving us the opportunity to gain the wealth of knowledge. May we in turn, give back all you’ve given us and more.” Amal Tamim