Wael and Lama Abou-Chakra Papers

Title

Subject

Awards

Lebanese--United States

Description

Biographical/Historical Note

Wael Abou-Chakra, the third of four children, was born in Beirut, Lebanon in December 1968. His family fled Beirut and moved to Ammatour, Shouf, Lebanon in 1975, when Wael’s father’s employment by the Lebanese military made the family a target of violence during the Lebanese Civil War. Wael studied mechanical engineering at the Arabic University of Beirut and mathematics at the Lebanese University before joining his older brother, who had left Lebanon to attend college, in Charlotte, North Carolina, to continue his education. He moved to the United States in 1986 and obtained a BA in Translation from UNC-Charlotte. While working post-graduation at IBM, Wael began studying computer science at a nearby community college and pursued certification in networking, hardware, and security. He received an MBA in Technology Management. Wael was awarded IBM’s Inventor of the Year Award in 2008, and began a career as a Senior Release Manager and a Master Inventor for IBM in the Raleigh-Durham area.

Wael is also involved with the Lebanese-American community. He is a member of the American Druze Society and served as president of the Triangle Lebanese Association. Wael traveled to Romania in 2008 as part of IBM’s Corporate Service Corps to help nonprofit and private sector agencies integrate into the European Union. In 2011, he was chosen to be a leader for IBM’s Celebration of Service program and he has earned the President Volunteer Service Award Certificate multiple times.

Wael is married to Lama Abou-Chakra, a fellow Lebanese-American who grew up in Haldi, a suburb of Beirut, and Ammatour. Lama's parents were both natives of Ammatour and descended from a different branch of the Abou-Chakra family. Lama was born in 1976 and moved to the United States in 1995. She graduated from high school in 1993 and met Wael the following year. Lama studied at North Carolina State University and University of Massachusetts, attending part-time while working at IBM. Wael and Lama have two children, Katia and Nassim.

Scope/Content Note

This collection contains documents and photographs relating to Wael Abou-Chakra’s achievements in business and community service, photographs from Lama Abou-Chakra’s childhood in Lebanon, and images from Wael and Lama’s life together. The collection also includes a restricted oral history available for on-site research.

Source

Wael and Lama Abou-Chakra

Publisher

Moise A. Khayrallah Center for Lebanese Diaspora Studies

Date

1978-2009, undated

Contributor

Processed by Khayrallah Program staff. Collection Guide content contributed by Claire A. Kempa and updated by Allison Hall, 2023 November.

Rights

The donor retains full ownership of any copyright and rights currently controlled. Nonexclusive right to authorize uses of these materials for non-commercial research, scholarly, or other educational purposes are granted to Khayrallah Center pursuant to U.S. Copyright Law. Usage of the materials for these purposes must be fully credited with the source. The user assumes full responsibility for any use of the materials.