#winter appeal

[tearsofrefugees]

‘I was told I could stay in the UK — then kicked out of my asylum accommodation’

As our Winter Appeal hits £1million, we turn the spotlight on an official policy that’s making newly recognised refugees homeless

[zar-zari]

THE SMILE GIVERS 

A team of 17 Afghan youngsters based in Afghanistan, America and Australia have come together to work as a team to achieve great things. We are here together working our best to get to the most vulnerable people in Kabul, Afghanistan to provide them with aid and help. We have high hopes of changing lives one smile at a time. Join us on this journey by supporting us and aiding us with whatever little you can, in order for us to give children, women and men who are in dire need a helping hand.

On the 30th of December 2020, we made history.  We had a dream of being someone that gives happiness in the hearts of the most vulnerable. To put a smile on the faces of orphan children, to give the love and attention they have lost, to ensure that they know they are loved and precious. A dream that we have dreamt about for years, we have now accomplished and what a beautiful day it was. 

Here we stand hand in hand - side by side with the very children, we have been praying to help. By your generosity we made it. All 250 orphans by the mercy and blessings of Allah we were able to make memories with, the most beautiful memories too. These children - their smiles, their laughter, their eyes, their whole being is why we will keep going, we will hold their hands tightly leaving no separation between us. To love them like that of our own. To give them whatever we possible can to keep them smiling. To be their brothers. To be their sisters. To be their family. These children are our saviours, they are our guardian angels, they are our hope and our pride. Hearts full of happiness, we ended one of the hardest and most heartbreaking year with smiles and high hopes for the future.

Be sure to follow their instagram page @the_smilegivers for more updates and information about their last event and future events! 

[tearsofrefugees]

Winter appeal: More charities back our call to allow asylum seekers to work after win

It follows Government policy change last week that will help reduce homelessness among refugees

[tearsofrefugees]

Winter appeal: 'It took years to reach UK as a refugee -this charity was a lifeline'

Abdullah fled West Darfur after escaping militia who abducted him - he tells his harrowing story to the Standard as part of our winter appea

[tearsofrefugees]

Winter appeal: The charity that's a lifeline for LGBTQ asylum seekers

Micro Rainbow offers vital support to asylum seekers facing discrimination and homelessness - and is one of the charities funded by our A Pl

[zar-zari]

We often forget the blessings of basic necessities, and suddenly they don't seem as small anymore. What we experience in this world, in our current times, is what many of our brothers and sisters had been facing for years; no education, no work, no income, no freedom, no peace.

These children have very little. With the ongoing man slaughter and corruption in Afghanistan we want to give the orphans something to smile about. Our event is educational and engaging! Help us out little smiles on their faces.

LINK FOR DONATIONS:

https://www.paypal.com/pools/c/8zKQ9ZUxMW

[zar-zari]

Be sure to follow their instagram page @the_smilegivers for more updates and information about their last event and future events! 

[interpaluk]

Cold hands, warm hearts

One of our Sponsorship Assistants reflects on the winter and her role in securing vital lifelines for children in need.

It is mid-winter and the cold is the only thing on my mind. Before I make a start on my work for the day I notice an unusual flush creeping over my complexion. The hint of heat on my cheeks thaws my cold hands so I cradle my face for a few minutes. I stop typing, I stop working and I start thinking.

***

I work in Interpal’s sponsorship department, processing requests and donations and delivering feedback from our projects in the field. In a nutshell, my role entails helping thousands of Palestinian children and their families to secure much needed aid. From my perspective, I see the donations process in its entirety, mediating between donors, staff in the field offices and our beneficiaries.

In amongst the administrative duties and everyday office tasks I have the unique privilege of hearing the stories of extraordinary children and their families. Even though I do not physically meet them, I am privy to intimate details about their lives. I know what they look like, (now and how they have changed and matured over the years), what they study at school, their aspirations and dreams for the future. But I also know of their difficulties. I see them grow up and vicariously experience their every joy and hardship from the distance of our office in London as they live through one of the most shameful periods in contemporary history; the Palestinian refugee crisis. Extraordinary children in extraordinary circumstances. The protracted displacement of the Palestinians is the longest running refugee crisis of our era and has now spilled over into the complications of other conflicts in the region, further muddying the waters until the international community finds it increasingly difficult to separate one set of causes from the effects of another.

Winter in London is a familiar visitor but one I cannot quite get used to. Of course, it has its moments of beauty, moments I enjoy best in my house, under the bed covers, tucked up in flannel pyjamas and drinking a steaming cup of hot chocolate. The long winter months seem to stretch out forever and it strikes me that despite any discomfort I may face, every year thousands of lives at home and abroad are lost because of vulnerability and our failure to act swiftly and humanely.

The winter is also a time of reflection, celebration and thankfulness. Year in year out, I am reminded of my many privileges. The list is endless, including in it the many inalienable social, political and economic freedoms we enjoy, but on a cold winter day like today, and even more on colder nights, I find myself ironically adding to my mental list the freedom from having to make the hard choices between feeding myself and my family and freezing to death.

Most people don't realise just how cold it can get in the Middle East. The idea that people can freeze to death in a place that is so often characterised by desert heat and the image of a burning sun seems unimaginable. However, winters in Palestine are as harsh as ours if not more so, as our planet’s changing climate brings with it unexpected new weather patterns, catching people unprepared and thus engineering a catastrophe.

Other than the superficial comparisons my imagination can muster, I cannot comprehend the realities enough to authentically feel their emotions. I get first hand reports from our field offices, trawl through figures and statistics, listen to anecdotes, scroll through pictures and sometimes even videos. But what are facts to a distant and disconnected mind? Our minds can crunch numbers and register emotions, but even the power of empathy cannot fully feel what it is like to be a Palestinian refugee.

Many of the families I deal with directly do not have means of heating themselves or their property. Still more cannot afford winter clothing and do not even possess enough clothes to be able to layer up - one of the main winter safety tips offered by the NHS. Others are without shelter due to lasting damage or destruction from successive shelling and war. Food is also scarce and in the winter an empty stomach can increase the likelihood of death. Moreover, the healthcare facilities in the region are under-equipped due to the tight restrictions on what is allowed in and out of the territory. Social security is almost non-existent and many people are trapped in legal and political quagmires. This is an over-simplification of their struggle, of course, just know that the odds are not stacked in their favour.

This is why I cannot help but pay attention to the cold creeping over me. The shivering, the shuddering, and the stiff discomfort all strike me as stark reminders of my privilege. What about those living in the crowded refugee camps of Gaza, Lebanon and Jordan, and in the occupied territories of the West Bank? What about their parents, grandparents, their friends, their communities, all of whom are fighting to survive the cold amidst all of their other daily struggles?

My thoughts are interrupted once more by the incessant creeping of the cold. I, unlike Palestinian children and family, am well equipped to fight the winter and its blues. Almost without thinking, I flick the switch on the electric heater stationed neatly under my desk and take a long sip of my hot cup of tea, a British tradition I proudly claim during the winter months.

As I write this, I reflect on the ways in which we should not feel guilty for the privilege of warmth and wealth, but instead put these comforts to good use. Let us warm the hands and hearts of those who are struggling to survive the winter, and revive another great British tradition in this festive season, that of generously giving and caring about those in need.