SUMMER GATHERING FOR REFUGEES
3 July 2017
Over 300 people attended our summer gathering on Saturday 1 July.
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Refugees from across Surrey came together for an evening of authentic Middle Eastern food and live music to celebrate Eid. For many this would have been their first time celebrating Eid away from home and we wanted to make it special.
It was a chance for people to socialise, make new friends and forget their troubles for one night. “It was lovely to meet new people my age.” 15 year-old, Jian. “I was very happy to be at this party, I felt like I was home, among my family.” Osama, musician and Syrian refugee. There were games and presents for the children. “It’s lovely seeing all the children playing so happily together and laughing.” Said one of the mothers. Local volunteers also joined in the celebrations. “It was wonderful to see people of all ages enjoying themselves… and people from different cultures enjoying music, dancing and delicious food. I felt so privileged to be there.” Judi, English language volunteer. THANK YOU We’d like to thank everyone who helped to make this event a success – including the Charter 600 Charity for funding the event, Ian and Andrew from the Reeds School and Joanna Sherringe for providing transport for the families coming from afar, all of the volunteer drivers who made it possible for local families to attend, all of the people who donated Eid presents for the children (too many names to list) and finally Susan and Verity for pulling the whole thing together. It was truly a community effort… and we believe that’s what welcoming refugees is about. Please check out some of the photos below and you can listen to an audio clip of the fabulous musicians here. GET INVOLVED If you’d like to get involved in our work, please check out our volunteering page for more information. |
Image: Vicki Felgate / Elmbridge CAN
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Photo Gallery
Images: Vicki Felgate / Elmbridge CAN