One of the most difficult situations is when someone lets you down when you need them the most. It is truly a painful feeling that gets imprinted in the human soul and that cannot be erased. If your country was the one needing you to heal its wounds and accompany it during its recovery, would you let your country down then? Whatever you answer might be, we cannot judge you for everyone has their own circumstances. However, if we all let our country down, who’s country is it going to be then? Based on this indisputable principle, humanity and the unconditional love to Lebanon, Lebanese businessman and expatriate, Kamal Shouhayib, started a journey aiming at serving Lebanon all the way from the United States of America, specifically from Michigan. The secret behind his story lies in a piece of chocolate.
His First Inspiration…His Family
Kamal Shouhayib, from the Lebanese city of Aley, established “The Choice Group” specified in real estate, investment and management in Michigan. Shouhayib’s family, from his wife Yasmin to his sons Rabih and Omar and his daughters Nada and Sara, was his first and last inspiration and motivation to continue and to resume the successes to a point where his business was enlarged to reach the Middle West, up to the North of Texas, for a value of more than a billion dollars.
Since the beginning, Shouhayib dedicated “The Choice Group” for two goals. The first is helping thousands of families achieve the American dream and become stable, and the second is supporting Lebanon. The travel of Shouhayib to the United States of America didn’t make him forget his motherland. Most importantly, it didn’t make him forget the will of his father in which he insisted on him to never forget his roots.
Kamal Shouhayib stayed in contact with Lebanon and never let it down when a lot of people refrained from investing in it due to the political, economic and security situation the country was witnessing. He launched a lot of developing projects, the most important one being the “NASA” project in Aley Hills, referring to his daughters Nada and Sarah. The project aims at encouraging the Lebanese expatriates from all around the world to come back to their motherland and to provide them with an international style residential facility allowing them to live in an environment similar to the one they are used to. Moreover, he also provided drinking water to more than 1200 official schools in Lebanon.
Thanks to his humanitarian activities and unlimited developing projects, Kamal Shouhayib won the Rotary International Award for “Service above Self”, which is the highest award someone could get from Rotary. He was also named man of the year in many events for his active role in the worlds of finance and business. Shouhayib won this award and many more as an appreciation for all the efforts he exerted.
Why did he choose the United States of America?
The businessman, Kamal Shouhayib, didn’t accidentally choose the United States of America. Behind this choice lies a story that goes back to the time period when he was a child of ten years. Back then, a destructive earthquake hit Lebanon, causing huge havoc in many Lebanese regions. A rescue package was sent to Lebanon from the United States of America with cookies and chocolate inside. A letter was written on each chocolate piece saying: “a gift from the American people to the Lebanese people.” This incident left a beautiful impression in Shouhayib and created an ardent desire to discover this generous country. Since then, he insisted on taking the nearest opportunity to travel there.
At 19 years old, Shouhayib visited the embassy of the United States of America in Lebanon, with his father’s support, to obtain a visa to study in America. This was where the journey of success started. Shouhayib carried the prayers of his loved ones and the will of his mother and travelled to the land of dreams to major in civil engineering in Michigan Technological University.
With time, he realized that he wanted to follow the steps of his father in the real estate world, and this was a great choice. He succeeded in this field and his name became well known in a record time, making him one of the most prominent Lebanese expatriates whom journeys were under the spotlight of Lebanese media, such as “Soufara el Arz” program, hosted by Haifa Charbel and “Saro Miye,” both being broadcasted on MTV channel.
