Devon volunteers flock to help refugees
After the shocking pictures of children dying in the Mediterranean, people across Devon are rushing to donate money and goods to refugees caught in the camps at Calais.
On Thursday 10th September hundreds of people will be bringing their donations to Exeter Friends Meeting House.
The collection event has been organised on facebook in a very short time.
Over 200 people signed up to attend within the first 48 hours after the initial announcement.
“People are being astonishingly generous” said Ghee Bowman, one of the organisers “our crowdfunder page has raised over £1800 in just a week – our target was £400! And there’s a strong sense that local people really care about men, women and children who are stuck in a miserable camp in Calais, with summer coming to an end!”
The group, known simply as Totnes and Exeter Calais Refugee Solidarity, came together on facebook at the end of August, after extensive media coverage of the so-called ‘migrant crisis’ in Europe: in fact, the crisis is a refugee crisis, as has become clear over the last few days.
“It’s fantastic”, said Alison Williams, one of the original members of the group “initially it was me and a friend, and it’s grown in the course of two weeks to be over 400 people. What we really need are warm men’s clothes, tents and sleeping bags. And money to buy food.”
The group plans to travel to Calais at the end of September with a vanload of useful items, and buy food for the camp when in France.
All the donations will be sent via a local organisation, Auberge des Migrants, who are working hard feeding over 1,000 people every day. As well as the Totnes/Exeter group, there are similar groups across the country, including one in East Devon, co-ordinated by Alice Bardwell, and one in Penzance, led by Pip Wright.
As well as helping refugees in Calais, the group are keen to support refugees and asylum seekers already in the UK, and are working with local charity Refugee Support Devon. Project Development worker Abigail Grace said “We provide support and assistance for asylum seekers, refugees and their families in Exeter and the surrounding areas. We have English tuition, IT classes, an allotment, a destitution project, and a twice weekly drop-in service.”
The collection event on Thursday 10th is at Exeter Friends Meeting House, EX2 4HU, near Hotel Barcelona. The priority items needed in Calais are clean, warm men’s clothes, shoes and wellies, sleeping bags and blankets, and tents.
Photo: Attila JANDI / Shutterstock.com
