5 Movement Moments: Dog Lover, Coach Ali, Food Distribution, Kalostea and Art

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Looking back over the last week and a few moments of connectivity we shared with the communities we work with and for on the Greek islands.

This week on Lesvos, our team met with Daniel. A 12-year-old resident from Afghanistan. Together with his family they arrived on Lesvos in 2019 and have been staying in Moria camp where he became friends with 'Lees', a little puppy he met inside the camp. Then the fire happened and Daniel lost the puppy. Three months ago he met another dog on Lesvos and decided to take care of him and named him 'Lees' too. Daniel is a talented kid, who loves playing guitar and dreams to continue his studies to be able to help his family in the future.

This week, we had a special moment with Ali, one of our amazing FutbolNet coaches, or as the kids call him, 'Ali Afghani Coach'! Together with his family they arrived in Greece earlier in 2019. "On Lesvos, I found a second chance to practice my favorite hobby again with Movement" he said. We've always felt Ali's passion for sports. But what we didn't know is that Ali had his own football team back in Afghanistan for over 20 years. Ali continues to bring the community's children together five days a week, to play, learn, heal and connect. 

Also on Lesvos this week, we distributed over 200 dry food packages to our amazing team of community volunteers. A monthly distribution enabling them to cook and share some of their preferred dishes. More so, to thank them for their tireless efforts in supporting the whole community.

On chios, our team of community volunteers decided to build more benches for Kalostea - our community space in Vial camp. Though another indoor community space is currently in progress for the winter season, the community continues to gather outdoor under the Greek sun, to connect over a cup of coffee or tea.

In Athens last week, a talented teenage boy in Nisos - one of the Homes we run together with The HOME Project - stepped up to recreate an artwork he saw on YouTube. His housemates got also excited about it and asked us for some material to make it happen. So far, four different artworks are now hanging on the walls of Nisos and these don't seem to be the last. Great job guys!

Not everyone has the same opportunities. That is why we continue to stand in solidarity with these people on the move on the Greek islands. These are some of the activities and programmes we run together with and for these communities in an effort to transform refugee camps into safe, healing and enabling environments. By starting a fundraiser on our Kentaa platform, you too can contribute to our community-led projects including; chai distribution, tailoring, education, sports and waste management.

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