Jewel in the rough

Thirty years ago, Nouha Hreish was a woman of leisure without a care in the world, living the good life in Lebanon. Last week she was in Sacramento, to be honored as the 67th Assembly District's "Woman of the Year" with 120 other women statewide.

"She certainly sets an example for other women, particularly young women," said Assemblyman Tom Harman, who nominated her for the recognition. Hreish was his first and only choice for the honor, he said.

Hreish was ill-prepared for the shock when civil war erupted in Lebanon in 1976, littering the streets with dead bodies as bombs killed innocent people. She was expecting her third child and knew this time it wasn't going to be easy ? the delivery room in the hospital was full of corpses.

She and her husband Albert decided to leave ? or rather "she decided," Albert Hreish said.

"I didn't want my children to grow up and carry a machine gun," Nouha Hreish said.

"It was a war for real estate," Albert Hreish said. The 15-year civil war ended in 1991, crippling Lebanon's economy and facilities. The influx of thousands of Palestinian refugees fleeing to Lebanon after the Arab-Israeli conflicts caused tensions to boil over between Lebanese political parties and Palestinians, leading to a conflict that left the country with no effective government.

The Hreish family packed their belongings in one car and drove through the mountains of Bekaa Valley in Lebanon, crossing into Syria, then Jordan, where they got their papers. They left behind a thriving jewelry business and emigrated to Canada.

After they made their way to the U.S. from Canada in 1982, Nouha and Albert Hreish decided to open Noal Jewelry Designs, initially in Westminster. They later moved to the Edinger Avenue location in Huntington Beach, where they have been for 22 years. This is the fourth generation of Hreishes in the jewelry-making business.

To start the business, Nouha took courses at the Gemological Institute of America as friends from the neighborhood helped Noal Jewelry grow by word of mouth.

"She came to this country from a war-torn Lebanon and started a successful business here," said Harman, who worked with Hreish on business-development opportunities for Huntington Beach. "She is also highly recognized in the community," he added.

"You can build your own identity here rather than be known as the wife of so-and-so," she said.