A volunteer from the Oxfam Castle Street shop in Swansea was chosen to visit Oxfam’s work helping refugees and migrants in Greece ahead of Oxfam’s 75th anniversary which takes place today
Bethan Havard was chosen with three other Oxfam volunteers, with nearly sixty years of service between them.
The group were selected from around the UK to see the impact of donations to Oxfam’s Refugee Crisis Appeal, which also helps people in Syria, Jordan, Lebanon and Iraq.
Bethan Havard, 55 from Swansea has volunteered at the Castle Street Oxfam shop in Swansea for over 10 years. The shop won a national award in 2014 because of the warm welcome it gives to refugees and asylum seekers in the city, becoming the first ever Shop Of Sanctuary. She joined Margot Edwards, 83 from Gravesend, Amelia Egan, 75 from Glasgow, and Tom Kelly, 66 from Liverpool to travel to camps and a community centre in the north-west of Greece to see the impact of Oxfam’s work and meet people Oxfam is supporting.
Oxfam was set up as the Oxford Committee for Famine Relief on 5 October 1942, calling for the Allied blockade in World War II to be relaxed to allow vital food and aid to reach hungry people in Greece and elsewhere in Europe. Since then it has grown into a global confederation working in 90 countries to end poverty and suffering. Last year Oxfam helped more than 22 million people worldwide.
Bethan Havard said: “This is the first time I visited Oxfam’s work and it was inspiring to see how some of the money from the Refugee Crisis Appeal has been spent. We met many people and it was upsetting to find out that there are young people here who have been separated from their parents and have no idea when, if ever, they are going to be reunited.”
Andrew Horton, director of Oxfam Trading said: “Volunteers are the lifeblood of our shops. Last year alone the shops raised over £17m to help fight poverty and injustice around the world. We want to recognize the critical contributions volunteers make daily. The visit to Greece has enabled four wonderful volunteers see for themselves the impact of their support and for us to highlight the important role that volunteers have had in making Oxfam what it is today.”
Since October 2015, Oxfam has helped over 100,000 people stuck in limbo on Greece’s mainland and on the island of Lesvos with clean water, sanitation, shelter, food, hygiene kits, and safe spaces for vulnerable women, and children.
Tens of thousands of families fleeing violence, persecution and poverty are currently stuck in limbo in Greece in makeshift accommodation. People are often split up from their loved ones and have little information on whether they will be deported or reunited with their families. Oxfam is campaigning for the rights of refugee families torn apart to be reunited.
To donate to Oxfam’s work in Greece visit oxfam.org.uk/Greece
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