Samos Volunteers
Donation protected
Hello all!
Tera Warn and I (Sarah Brooks), have recently been accepted to work in a refugee camp on the island of Samos in Greece. For the month of July we will be working with the NGO Samos Volunteers, founded in 2015 to provide life-saving items to the government run refugee camp on the island. In 2015 this camp was set up as a temporary stop for refugees to process their paperwork before they made their way through Europe, however with the signing of the EU Turkey deal the migrant flow to the EU has essentially stopped, stranding thousands on the island. This in turn has left a camp that was initially meant to house max 700 people to now house upwards of 2,500. As you can imagine the conditions are dire to say the least; families living in tents year round, major sewage issues, and lack of all basic needs.
While our official jobs won't be assigned to us until arrival, our time will be spent anywhere from teaching children and running workshops, to organizing donations and cleaning bathrooms. Anything that can be done to give children some sense of childhood, and help adults regain some sense of worth. We are both looking forward to this experience, but at the same time are aware that mentally there is no way to prepare for the heartache that is sure to go along with it. That being said, for both of us it is very important that this is much more than just an experience we have in our twenties, and hope to incorporate what we learn into our careers for the rest of our lives.
Here's where our ask comes in:
Samos Volunteers requires that part of our involvement comes through fundraising in order to support ourselves while we are there. Any money that is raised here will be split amongst the two of us to help with our flights, housing, food and transportation the month we are in Samos. We also want to make it clear that while we will be traveling after this, none of that will come from any money that is raised for us to work in the camp. If you feel strongly about donating but would prefer that the money go straight to the organization rather than our expenses you can do so through this link: https://samosvolunteers.org/donations/.
We will also be hosting a BBQ fundraiser the weekend of June 10th in which all the funds raised will go directly to supplies needed for the camp. Details about the event will be posted on FB soon! Thank you all for all your love and support, please feel free to reach out to me if you have any questions!
Tera Warn and I (Sarah Brooks), have recently been accepted to work in a refugee camp on the island of Samos in Greece. For the month of July we will be working with the NGO Samos Volunteers, founded in 2015 to provide life-saving items to the government run refugee camp on the island. In 2015 this camp was set up as a temporary stop for refugees to process their paperwork before they made their way through Europe, however with the signing of the EU Turkey deal the migrant flow to the EU has essentially stopped, stranding thousands on the island. This in turn has left a camp that was initially meant to house max 700 people to now house upwards of 2,500. As you can imagine the conditions are dire to say the least; families living in tents year round, major sewage issues, and lack of all basic needs.
While our official jobs won't be assigned to us until arrival, our time will be spent anywhere from teaching children and running workshops, to organizing donations and cleaning bathrooms. Anything that can be done to give children some sense of childhood, and help adults regain some sense of worth. We are both looking forward to this experience, but at the same time are aware that mentally there is no way to prepare for the heartache that is sure to go along with it. That being said, for both of us it is very important that this is much more than just an experience we have in our twenties, and hope to incorporate what we learn into our careers for the rest of our lives.
Here's where our ask comes in:
Samos Volunteers requires that part of our involvement comes through fundraising in order to support ourselves while we are there. Any money that is raised here will be split amongst the two of us to help with our flights, housing, food and transportation the month we are in Samos. We also want to make it clear that while we will be traveling after this, none of that will come from any money that is raised for us to work in the camp. If you feel strongly about donating but would prefer that the money go straight to the organization rather than our expenses you can do so through this link: https://samosvolunteers.org/donations/.
We will also be hosting a BBQ fundraiser the weekend of June 10th in which all the funds raised will go directly to supplies needed for the camp. Details about the event will be posted on FB soon! Thank you all for all your love and support, please feel free to reach out to me if you have any questions!
Organizer
Sarah Doré Brooks
Organizer
Detroit, MI
