When Wealth Is a Path to Good!!

... A great humanitarian project, founded and nourished by a lady from among the wealthy of the city of Aleppo, Mrs. Matilda Salem, in the name of her late husband, Mr. George Salem... And they still say: woman is fit for nothing but her home?!!

We were a small band of ladies of the "Women's Cooperation," formerly known as the Young Women's Christian Association, when Mrs. Matilda Salem received us at her charitable industrial school, known as the "George Salem School," in the Sabil quarter — the quarter of palaces — in the city of Aleppo.

I cannot express the feeling of admiration and pride that took hold of me when we entered this institute, with its wide open spaces and its huge multi-storied building, constructed in the most modern style and with the utmost perfection the builder's hand has attained; and how I longed to see the face of that great benefactress and to become acquainted with the person of that wealthy lady who has devoted her money, her time, and her thought to the service of others and to laying a great stone in the building of the edifice of the Syrian nation. Scarcely a minute and a little more had passed before Mrs. Matilda came forward with her gentle smile and her serene gaze, which bespoke tenderness in her heart and firmness and enterprise in her mind.

Never have I felt such ease and familiarity in speaking with anyone as the ease and familiarity I felt while speaking with Mrs. Salem. She spoke to me about her institution in a voice that was a blend of gentleness, modesty, love, and strength. So I took courage and asked her whether she would permit me to write a word about the institution in one of the magazines or newspapers. She answered me:

"A young lady anticipated you in this idea last year. She did in fact write an article that she wished to publish in The Woman's Voice, but when she showed it to me, I kept it."

I said: "And why, Madam?"

She answered: "I never thought of gaining praise from this work. I did what I did only in fulfillment of my late husband's wish and my own, nothing more."

I said: "You have no need of praise, Madam. The pleasure and peace of soul are enough for you, as you carry out a humanitarian work, taking in a large number of the sons of the homeland and equipping them with learning, craft, and morals, so that they may benefit themselves and their country — and who knows what would become of some of them if they were left to their own devices, to face life unprepared?! In our country there are many rich people: some of them pile money upon money; some squander it in harmful or worthless ways; and some carry within themselves the good seed of humanitarian work, but need someone to encourage them and an example to push them along the path of action. All our rich, whatever their inclinations, need someone to rouse and guide them, so that they may turn even a portion of their money to the service of their needy brothers, especially among the toiling class and the destitute poor. So, as encouragement to our wealthy and in mercy toward our poor, I beg you, Madam, to allow a word to be said about this worthy institution."

Only then did Mrs. Matilda consent to my request, but she made it a condition that the word be simple and modest. From her I learned that the idea of founding a charitable industrial school, which would render to some of the poor of the city of Aleppo a service they needed more than any other, had occupied a large part of her late husband's thinking and of her own. After they had studied the project thoroughly, they set about bringing it into being, and for that purpose bought a spacious piece of land outside the city of Aleppo, near "Ain al-Tall," which waters the city. But the hand of fate did not grant the husband life enough to complete the project; the wife, however, resolved to carry the burden herself, so as to fulfill her husband's wish and not withhold the good from those in need of it. In 1947 the Jesuits closed their institute, situated at the beginning of the Sabil quarter; Mrs. Salem seized this opportunity and bought the institute from them for a large sum of money. Then she set about altering it and adding to it whatever would make it fit to serve the two purposes, academic and industrial. In the same year she brought in teachers competent in the theoretical and practical sciences and equipped the institute with the modern equipment needed for the trades of carpentry, tailoring, shoemaking, printing, and mechanics; nothing was lacking to make these trades as perfect and complete as could be — indeed, the kitchen could not be rivaled by any kitchen in the most modern universities of Europe.

The institute now has 120 students taught free of charge, who take their midday meal at the institute's expense, while the institute's automobiles carry them to and from their homes. A new wing is under construction, and once it is completed the institute will be able to take in far more than this number; it will also be possible to accept some of the students as boarders.

When the students graduate from this school, they carry the certificate of proficiency alongside the diploma of the trade they have been practicing.

Worthy of mention is that Mrs. Salem has built a private tomb for her late husband within the institute, and has also set up a statue of him. She has likewise set apart a room to serve as a chapel, which she adorned with the work of her own hands.

What calls for admiration and appreciation, and for bowing before this great lady, is that in addition to directing this institute, she still manages her husband's extensive commercial affairs.

If I have mentioned this, I have mentioned it to show the humanitarian, national consciousness that has begun to appear in the hearts of some of our wealthy, and the mighty works that woman is performing in this homeland with devotion and self-sacrifice.