Ever since Emilio Isaias arrived in Ecuador in 1912, from Lebanon, the Isaias family have wanted to contribute and give back to those less fortunate than themselves.
Emilio Isaias, like many immigrants at the time, did not have an easy time in his new adopted country of Ecuador, but businesses from selling fabrics to installing a textile factory, from an importer of construction materials to a sugar mill, made this self-made man a successful entrepreneur.

However, he never forgot his humble beginnings and ensured that his children, Pedro Isaías Barquet and Nahím Isaías Barquet, understood the need for charity, assistance and philanthropy.

Pedro Isaias bought a small bank called “La Filantrópica”. The dream was to make it grow and grant credits to the fishermen and farmers of Guayaquil, a port city in Ecuador, to strengthen the stagnant economy for the good of its residents.
The small bank achieved sustained growth and with it, the family’s initiative to help people who had no means to feed their families, because they had little access to education, which made it hard to find jobs.

On October 20, 1967, Nahím Isaías at that time, president of “La Filantrópica”, after meeting with executives of the institution and other members of the Isaias family, decided to create the “Fundación La Filantrópica” to provide a legal framework for the charitable work they were already doing.

The institution in its early years, provided family training and job education, so that low-income people could generate profits with artisanal work and at the same time strengthen their self-esteem and grow as individuals.

There is a well-known ancient saying that if you give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.

So, the Isaias family decided than rather provide handouts, the foundation, during its early years, provided family training and job education, so that low-income people could generate profits from artisanal work and at the same time strengthen their self-esteem and grow as individuals, professionally and personally.

Unfortunately, in 1985, the situation in the country deteriorated and leftist groups were threatening people, institutions and the government itself. In that year Nahím Isaías Barquet was kidnapped by an Ecuadorian terrorist group, which was looking for money to finance other Latin American cells. During the ill-fated rescue attempt, Nahim’s captors killed him.

Rather than wallow in the excruciating pain of the murder, Nahim’s nephews, Roberto, Estéfano and William Isaias in 1988, renamed the foundation after their uncle, which until today is called the Nahim Isaias Foundation.

As a result of massive instability in Ecuador, much of the population was struggling. Health and education were two areas that so many Ecuadorians required a helping hand in.

Especially in the most remote parts of the country, people needed help.
The foundations opened small dispensaries and clinics in different provinces. 22 mini health centers were equipped and manned by a doctor and nurse to provide first aid and general medicine. This was an ambitious project that covered equidistant geographical points around the nation and required supplies and constant supervision.

More than 100,000 people per year were cared for in such places as Guayaquil, Quito, Cuenca, Portoviejo, Manta, Riobamba, Ambato, Machala, Esmeraldas, El Triunfo, Santo Domingo, La Troncal, Ibarra, Loja, Guaranda, Anconcito, Milagro, Jipijapa, Cuenca and Azoguez.

Today, more than a quarter of a million people are treated annually at the Foundation. Many other people and institutions have since joined the foundation’s work or who collaborate financially and provide assistance to the people who work there, because they know that everyone’s contribution is essential, and they know that the Nahim Isaias Foundation has a very clean and solid reputation.

The Isaias brothers have since relocated to Florida in the U.S., but they have never for one moment forgot their country, its people and their own humble roots.
They still believe that imparting health education is one of the fundamental tools that a family will have to confront life’s challenges, to work with the necessary strength, and to watch their kids grow physically and emotionally.

The Isaias family strongly believes that everyone should receive medical attention when needed, but preventive healthcare programs are equally fundamental in impoverished communities making a substantial difference. There is also the need to help children with serious illnesses so that they can get better and make their dreams come true, and the foundation is there to assist.

Roberto, Estéfano and William, along with all of the other members of the Isaias family, like Estefania Isaias, Luis Isaias and Andres Isaias, the new generation of Isaias philanthropists, understand they need to always be prepared to act in the moments in which they are needed the most.

Time and time again Ecuador has suffered natural disasters that turned into a catastrophe, and they have acted without hesitation doing everything in our power.
Since the move to the U.S., the Isaias family has felt a burning need to also undertake charitable work in their adopted country.

Children, health, education and a better chance in life motivated Emilio Isaias more than a century ago, and his family, despite difficult and challenging times, have never let the flame of philanthropy die out.

The Isaias family have passed on their faith and dedication to those who desperately need them, not through their genes, but through action, example and pure selfless dedication.

Roberto Isaias is an Ecuadorian businessman

References:

The Isaias Group

The Isaias Brothers

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