When the refugees started to come in my country, they were gathered all in Idomeni, an area near the borders with FYROM. It was a very awful place, all of them were living in tents during the winter. Our group (Kyriotissa’s Utopia) went there in March 2016, our objective was to collect food and other necessary things and to give it to the refugees… It was a very touching and unforgettable experience… All the people there were in dirt and in cold and the NGOs in Idomeni told us not to give them anything, because they were so desperate that they could fight to get some things… A little boy approached me there, I thought he was 8 years old and he was standing erect all the time, close to me and he was so good that I wanted to adopt him and help him to get out of there.. I took of a photo of him, but unfortunately I don`t remember his name…
After this experience I wanted to become a volunteer and help these people. Some days later, we learned that a military camp near our city will host refugees and I was so happy that I could go and help them! I think they came in “Armatolos Kokkinos Camp”, in Varvares, a village near my city, Veria, on 25 March! The situation there is so much better, because they could live in a house. Furthermore, this camp is near a lake and the place is great! Some people of my city made a “group of solidarity” and each of us had a duty. I was responsible to write all them down… They were 473, as I remember… Some of the refugees who spoke English, helped me to make this interview, because the other didn’t speak English and so they translated. I wrote how many of them lived in the hotspot, their origin (The most are from Syria and 4-5 families from Iraq), their health problems, if they had family in other EU countries and more personal information. Also, I was responsible for the creative work with kids. Despite all the difficulties, I tried to show them a movie in Arabic (it was Nemo). I borrowed all the equipment (projector, speaker stand projection screen) by myself… They were so happy that day, especially the children, when we watched the movie in their own language! I had a CD player with me and we listened music and danced and laughed! My mother, who is also a volunteer, started to play with them and make a “dancing train”! In the other day we organized a music night with instruments that some of them played! Every day we also played with the children and tried to make them happy! I could say much more, but I have to finish.
All these people are very grateful and nice and they want so much to leave and continue with their lives… Most of them, want to go to Germany, but it is very difficult.. Many families are separated and they are waiting for the time they will be together again…
After these months, I have made a lot of friends in the camp, we talk on Facebook, we go for a walk together and I feel so happy to I met them! Now, I am trying to learn Arabic to understand them better. As I said before most of them don`t know English.
Something that I would like to mention is that everything we offered them and still doing (even though now NGOS came in the camp) is only from ourselves and from some citizens of Veria. We are not an NGO and we never received economic help from anyone, we paid everything from our pocket…
Magda Kaisaridou
