Every garden has a beginning. Ours started with a love story, survived a war, and found its roots in a diagnosis nobody expected.
This is how Laila's Garden came to be.
A Love Story in Gaza
We met in 2014 through a mutual family friend. The connection was instant. It felt like we had been talking our whole lives, as if we knew each other forever. You couldn't find us separate — we were always together.
Three months later, on December 14, 2014, Shaheen proposed to Laila at sunset on the beach. She said yes. We had a lovely wedding, rented a small apartment on the side of our city, Gaza, and began building our life together.
Shaheen worked at a family-run medical supplies business. Laila studied language teaching. We both loved old music, going to the beach, and reading books. Shaheen is more spontaneous; Laila is calculated and won't do anything before planning. Like the Yin and Yang.
Our Family Grows
In 2015, our first-born came to life: Shawkat. The cutest and calmest baby you will ever see. The feeling when you first see the baby you've been hearing and speaking to for nine months is the most unreal one you will ever encounter. Then came Tolen. Then Zain. Our home was full. Our hearts were full.
Life in Gaza was never easy. We were always under pressure and stress. We had our ups and downs, but we always worked through our problems together. We grew stronger together.
October 7th, 2023
Everything changed. Our world was destroyed. Everything we loved and lived for in Gaza was gone. We were very lucky to escape, but our troubles didn't end there. They only just started.
We arrived in Egypt with our three children and very little else. New country. No job. No medical insurance. No home. Starting from zero.
A New Diagnosis
In October 2024, exactly one year after we fled Gaza, Laila was diagnosed with HER2 breast cancer.
After hearing the news, we were in the worst situation of our lives. At that moment, it felt as if the world had crushed us. Breathing became too hard. With three kids in our hands, life looked very sad and impossible to live.
"But then we thought about gardens. Gardens go through winter. Everything looks dead. Cold. Hopeless. But underneath the soil, life is waiting. And when spring comes... everything blooms again."
Planting the Seeds
Shaheen stayed up through countless nights. As a financial analyst and data specialist, he did what he knows best: he researched. He analyzed. He planned. He poured his analytical mind into building something that could help fund Laila's treatment while creating something beautiful for others going through similar pain.
Laila, between treatment sessions, brought her gentle spirit to every design. She knew what cancer patients actually needed because she was living it every day. Not pink ribbons. Not "fighter" language. Comfort. Hope. Beauty.
The Garden Opens
Laila's Garden launched as a small Etsy shop. Soft velveteen blankets for chemo days. Ceramic mugs with messages like "Hope Blooms Here." Wall art that whispers encouragement instead of shouting motivation. Every product is something Laila herself would want to receive.
Every single purchase goes directly toward two things: creating beautiful products that bring comfort, and funding Laila's cancer treatment. There's no corporate middleman. No fancy office. Just a family, a dream, and a lot of love.
What Your Support Means
When you shop at Laila's Garden, you're not just buying a mug or a blanket. You're funding medicine. You're funding blood tests and scans. You're giving Laila more time with Shawkat, Tolen, and Zain. You're proving that hope can bloom even in the darkest seasons.
We're still in winter. Treatment is ongoing. The road is long. But we see the first buds appearing. And we believe — with everything we have — that spring is coming.
Thank you for being part of our garden.
With love, Shaheen & Laila 🌹
