Youssef M.Bahra

My name is Youssef M. Bahra. I was born in Damascus, Syria. I started my American Dream Journey via New York before arriving in and falling in love with the State of Rhode Island.

After working briefly at Oakland Car Wash in Cranston, I landed a job at Cardi's Construction Company.

I took language courses at Brown University to improve my English, then I matriculated at RISD for courses on jewelry-making.

Later on, I purchased restaurants and cafés, Cumberland form Stores (Convenience Store and Gas Station). I ended up purchasing several Cumberland Farms Stores/dairy Mart and others which I turned into a franchise portfolio named Bahra’s Market, throughout the New England region.

After that, I purchased my first Shopping Center in Narragansett in 1995.

I attended the Gemological Institute of America in San Diego, California where I graduated as a Gemologist. Upon graduation, I started a new franchise called Cash For Gold /empire gold and diamond with a dozen locations in RI/MA.

Furthermore, I started purchasing commercial property until I switched to becoming a developer building small malls, hotels, multi-residential units, etc. until 2023.

A couple of years ago, in the middle of winter, I met my first veteran on the front step of one of my buildings. She was shivering in the subzero temperatures, so I brought her inside the warm building and bought her a meal. The following day I returned to the building and found her still sleeping in the room. When she woke up she told me her story, which resonated in my head as it had never occurred to me that the veterans who served our country could ever end up in these circumstances which also triggered a memory of Big Ed, my Irish Italian princess Jackie’s Father. He once told me that veterans like himself were never properly taken care of upon coming home.

A month later, I got a call from one of my bankers who told me he knew an individual seeking an investor to finance a veteran’s program. When he told me this, I instantly recalled the story of the veteran I found sleeping outside my building. I agreed to meet him.

Although things did not work out with that gentleman, I put together a dedicated team to work on our Hope and Wellness Centers for Veterans. This endeavor may turn out to be my best and most important project and I am committed to ensure it success.