Superstar volunteer takes the lead on Calais cycle workshop
In the last two months, we have added a cycle workshop to the list of services we provide for refugees. It’s proven very popular. Bikes provide a freedom few have when they usually walk everywhere, and this independence is treasured when relying on charities for food and clothes. Tia Bush (pictured above) is one of our wonderful long-term volunteers who goes above and beyond to help with bikes, amongst other things. She can often be found in the warehouse dismantling old bikes to use for spare parts, or out buying any needed accessories that we don’t have. Being fluent in …
Meet Paul, the UK peacekeeper who keeps coming back
This is the story of Paul, the UK peacekeeper who decided to help Care4Calais for the first time. He enjoyed it so much he is now a regular volunteer on both sides of the Channel, providing vital assistance to those in need. Coming to volunteer in Calais can be a big decision, but hundreds of people donate their time and energy to refugees by volunteering with us every year. One of the many privileges of our work is meeting so many incredible people inside and outside of the settlements. Every volunteer has their own story to tell: of their motivations …
Help keep families fed and warm with just £10
Did you know you can help keep families warm with just a tenner? Today, we took food packs to the families living outdoors in Dunkirk who have been sleeping in a derelict warehouse in squalid conditions and in the freezing cold. As always, we can only hope that cooking over open fires may bring some temporary relief. Our volunteers also took hot tea and coffee, hairdressing facilities, WiFi and phone charging facilities, and games for kids and parents alike. They worked hard to bring the families some cheer in this bitter winter weather. Each food pack costs just £10 and …
Watch: Refugees rush to help council workers with litter
Watch as a group of refugees rush to help council workers with litter picking this week at a camp site. This week, something lovely happened. We were up early at one of the sites we regularly visit, and local council workers turned up to do a litter pick. Apparently, this is a regular event. The refugees greeted them as friends and all went to help. Again, apparently a regular occurrence. Watch the video below: To volunteer or donate, just click here. …
Refugees and volunteers laugh the queue away in Brussels
This week, we went to Brussels to distribute walking boots. This is an expensive item for Care4Calais, but more importantly, it’s a high-value item to the refugees as they walk many miles. As you can imagine, shoes get sodden very quickly when you’re living in the pouring rain. We were told it would be a tough distribution, and it was. There is great need and we never have enough for everyone. The refugees must queue for everything, from food and clothes to basic hygiene essentials, and this is no different. To help manage the long queue, we gave out raffle …
‘End of the world’: crisis on the Turkish border
Have you read today’s harrowing account from New York Times journalist Carlotta Gall on the ‘end of the world’ situation unfolding in the Turkish border with Syria, where almost one million people have had to flee their homes since December? Facing heavy bombardment of towns and villages, about 900,000 people, mostly women and children, have fled their homes since December, joining the largest exodus of Syria’s civil war since it began nine years ago. Most have headed north, toward the Turkish border, and are living out in the cold. The lucky ones are crammed into tent camps, others sleeping in the open …
Gearing up for boots distribution in Brussels
Today in Calais, it was cold, wet and windy. I wore four layers and was still soaked to the skin by the constant heavy rain. The one thing that cheered me up was seeing people wearing the walking boots we had previously given out. I know how much walking refugees do every day, and I know that the ones wearing poor footwear would have been sodden today. Living outside, there is no way to get wet stuff dry, and walking in wet trainers or leather is no joke. Neither is the foot rot that can follow. Seeing these boots on …
Storm Dennis: help refugees stay as dry as you
This is Storm Dennis in Dunkirk today. It has been brutal for the refugees here who are living outdoors, trying desperately to stay dry. We’ve had a team out with ropes, pegs, and tools trying to secure tents, but there is only so much we can do in these conditions. We distributed sleeping bags and rain ponchos, as well as hot tea and biscuits. By the end of the day, we were soaked, cold, and tired. The difference is that we can go home and get dry, leaving people behind outside, still cold and still wet, in these terrible conditions. …
UK must follow EU countries in welcoming child refugees
There are currently around 5,000 unaccompanied child refugees in Greece. France has pledged to accept 400 of them, and several German states have expressed their willingness to take in some. Now, Finland’s Interior Minister Maria Ohisalo has said she also wants to see Finland welcome some of these children. It’s time for the UK to considering welcoming in some of these child refugees. To tell the UK Government to follow suit, even after Brexit, please click here to sign this urgent petition. To volunteer, donate or get involved in Care4Calais’ work, please click here to find out how you can help …
Aram’s story: from tortured refugee to Thanet councillor
From being a tortured refugee to a councillor in Thanet, Aram’s story is a truly inspiring one that reminds us how lucky we are to be born somewhere safe. In 1999 Aram Rawf was a terrified 17-year-old fleeing Iraq in the back of a lorry. He had been taken to a mountain camp in northern Iraq – previously Kurdistan – and tortured by extremists after he refused to train as a suicide bomber. A ruse by his older sister saw him taken to hospital and then on to his escape. Twenty years later Aram is a British citizen, a councillor, …
