Changing my life to help refugees
This little pocket, hand-sewn for me by a little girl in a refugee camp at Dunkirk, is very special. It reminds me of the day I changed my life to help refugees. When I was volunteering at the camp, I helped with sewing sessions, which were particularly popular with children in the camp. One little girl who loved cutting out love-hearts and sewing them onto things, made me this pocket. I remember that one of her friends often used to stand behind her to watch, without taking part. When I got back home, I saw a news report that some …
Cycling 205 miles for refugees
Today a big thank you goes to our wonderful supporter John from Reading, who recently went the extra mile, 205 miles in fact and in just one day, for refugees! John signed up for the national ‘Chase the Sun’ event, which is a coast to coast cycle ride that took place on 21 June. After hearing about the needs of refugees in Reading, John decided to use this cycle event to raise funds for Care4Calais there. He agreed with his company to match his own efforts, and raised the magnificent sum of £3,036. Our huge thanks go to John. The …
The social side of being a volunteer
Last week a simple conversation in the park completely made my day. I chatted to Adel, who came to London after fleeing Sudan, and the conversation pinged from books to relationships to food to places we’d both love to visit. It wasn’t just interesting, it was like a new awakening to meet someone so young who had been through so much and still had so much energy and enthusiasm. For Adel, asylum means safety. In Sudan, there are many problems – food shortages and extreme violence are common, a safe future is just a dream. He has risked everything to …
If they don’t give up, how can we?
Today I spoke to a man about his journey across the Mediterranean. He was in one of two boats that set off from Libya. Each had 117 men, women and children on board, but only the one he was on made it across. They watched the other one sink. There were 117 people on board a boat meant for 30, meaning there was no space for personal possessions or even food or water. After a few hours they grew hungry and thirsty, and this got worse as they became colder and more tired. He described how, as night fell, the …
Razik’s Story
“If you don’t believe and do as God asks, you must be killed.” That’s what the officer at my local Sharia court in Pakistan said to me one day when he heard me questioning my friend on some of his religious beliefs. I lived near the border with Afghanistan, and the man was a member of the Taliban, so it was a worry. He began watching me, and he and other members of the court would drive slowly past my house staring. I knew one day he would drive past with a gun – after all there was no law …
#NotAllHeroesWearCapes
Massive thanks to Town Hall Dental who came all the way down from West Yorkshire to treat 45 patients at Napier Barracks this weekend! This is the awesome team who also come over to treat people in Calais and Dunkirk. They really are our heroes. Some of the men have been waiting weeks to see a dentist and it will be a great relief to people who have been in pain for days on end, sometimes unable to sleep. Fantastic work by incredible people! …
“It’s not by choice, to live like this.”
Hashem, in his early twenties from Iran, has been sleeping rough in Calais for three months. Until recently his tent was in an abandoned warehouse here. He said it was good to have shelter there, surrounded by hundreds of other people, and felt safe. That was until the police came early one morning. They destroyed and confiscated what belongings they could find. Hundreds of people were taken out of Calais on buses. Others, like Hashem, were able to escape but were left with nothing I met Hashem one hot afternoon last week. We sat on the dry grass, carefully staying …
“Without you, I would not be here.”
Late one night last September my friend Ervin called me, frantic and afraid. Little wonder: as I was soon to discover he’d just found out that he was being sent home to be killed. He was rambling and hard to follow on the phone, but he sounded so upset that I got in my car and set out to look for him. I found him in the middle of a park in Liverpool, where I live. Agitated beyond belief, he was pacing back and forth in the darkness, his habitual limp more pronounced because of his twitchy, nervous movement. He …
Fun in the Sun at Napier
Our big distribution for the men at Napier Barracks last Sunday was utterly uplifting, fun and joyous. For a few bright, sunny hours at least, troubles were swept away by friendship, chatter and laughter – it felt like everything that makes Care4Calais what it is. After the guys had chosen clothes, we set up food stalls, games, hairdressing, football and cricket in the park in Folkestone. It was so brilliant to see the guys playing together and hanging out with us after being cooped up in the miserable, ramshackle barracks for so long. We had planned it as a special …
Yes Sir, We Can Boogie
At every Calais distribution we have a music speaker which the refugees connect their phones to. A few weeks ago, I met a Sudanese man who was dancing to the music with the biggest smile on his face. He came and sat next to me and told me that when he lived in Sudan, he had studied music at university. “These songs remind me of the past,” he said. “Times that I have been remembering, but finding it hard to connect with while I have been in Calais.” The music gave him hope that if he ever made it to …
