BE STRONG

“I became fascinated by it; it became a lifeline for me, offering hope during dark times.”

Yara Chammaa, a.k.a. Yaraspucia, chose her online handle from the character Raspucia in the movie Norbit. Despite being portrayed as a negative character, she chose this name as a reminder to be strong and bring out the Raspucia in her.

“I was born and raised in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and later moved to Lebanon during the 1991 Gulf War,” she shares. “Growing up, I had a love for sports, especially snowboarding, and I became the Lebanese Snowboarding Big Air Jump Champion in my teens. Although shy, I am bold in expressing myself with fashion and makeup. I am drawn to colorful things, which could be due to my Tritanopia color blindness. I’m a little OCD and find solace in organizing my surroundings, including color-coding my clothes! Academic excellence has been a driving force in my life since a young age. I am my own harshest critic, constantly pushing myself to be the best.”

Professionally, she pursued a career in computer science and became one of the first female software developers. She established her own company in home automation, which was initially a successful startup that almost got bought up by Microsoft! A few years later, she prioritized family, raising her two lovely boys, Kayan and Zad, with her wonderful husband, Hesham.

“Life took an unexpected turn when I was diagnosed with breast cancer,” she recalls. “It was a year-long battle emotionally and physically, and it took me time to get through all the self-doubt to be able to leave the experience behind me. In the midst of my personal hardships, Lebanon was also facing turmoil and a deep multi-dimensional crisis with the collapse of the banking sector, which was followed by the August 4 explosion that took the life of my brother-in-law whom I had grown up with. I was devastated, I stopped seeing colors…”

She and her family escaped to Dubai, trying to escape all the pain in search of stability. A few months later, Yarapucia discovered the world of cryptocurrencies and blockchain. As a victim of a banking system collapse, she became a true believer in the blockchain revolution and decentralized technologies.

“My journey began with investments into cryptocurrencies, and quickly expanded into NFTs after my son convinced me to purchase my first one, “Creepz,” she says. “I delved further into this world, eventually extending my collection to include digital art. I became fascinated by it; it became a lifeline for me, offering hope during dark times. I became whole-heartedly involved in web3 as I discovered projects and teams with amazing ideas. My love of order, my background in computer science, and my creative side all seemed to chime with it. The future is bright! #WAGMI.”