Ceremony to Honor Mr. Issam Fares

Bazbina,  June 28, 2009

Ceremony to Honor Mr. Issam Fares

at the Orthodox Seat at Cheikh Taba, Akkar.

At an honoring ceremony on June 28th that took place at the Orthodox regional seat of “Akkar and Its Environs” in Cheikh Taba, Archbishop Basilious Mansour offered a great thanks to Mr. Issam Fares for his generous and continuous support to the people of Akkar and towards the development of the entire region. Mr. Fares has been an unrelenting philanthropist to his people and to the various communities. For over 30 years Mr. Fares extended support through educational scholarships, free medical care, and execution of major roads in the area, erecting University buildings and municipality offices; also, mosques and churches. He was, and still, enthused to participate generously in any project that will be of benefit to the communities of Akkar and other regions in Lebanon.

From his career and his dealings with his area, Mr. Fares is offering several important lessons to our generation and the generations to come, among which:

1-      He is a self-made-man that succeeded in business and his success reflected beautifully on the place and the communities he came from. Many of us might succeed in life and attain wealth and clout; however, we shun from returning to our villages, have a part in its development and avoid interacting with our origins. What a shame!  I staunchly believe that any person who succeeds in life and does not interact with his roots and his community, then that success, sorry to assert, is a total failure and it is no more called a success.

2-      The second lesson he is giving us is to offer without expecting rewards. To offer freely without a reward is a feeling that could never be taught nor acquired. It is a basic characteristic that is born in a human being and, as he advances in age, that quality keeps growing and continuously polishing. No matter what we give, whether small or large according to someone’s capabilities, but we should train ourselves to such a quality. It clears the mind and purifies the soul.

We are grateful to Mr. Fares for his unlimited generosity, but most importantly, we thank him for setting an example to all of us as mentioned in the two points previously stated. We send our warm regards to him in the hope that we shall see him among us soon.

Manuel Hazim.

* ENTER -  Photos from the Honoring Ceremony.

* ENTER -  حفل تكريم الرئيس فارس في دار مطرانية عكار