Back to the Islands The refugee crisis in Greece is often portrayed as connected to the war in Syria. And while Syrians do represent the majority of refugees in Europe, our team spent last week on a small Greek island in a camp that is incredibly diverse. We met refugees from as far east as Bangladesh, as far [...]
Math is Too Hard! My favorite memory is of meeting Ari, a Syrian refugee. He was 16 years old and brilliant. As an engineer, I began asking him if he would like to study engineering. He said, “No, math is too hard” So I began asking him questions about math assuming he was struggling with [...]
A large refugee camp on a small Greek island needs help! We're looking for a team of 2-4 young men to go serve for 1-3 months. Responsibilities will include moving tents, passing out food, playing volleyball, and being the first impression of Christ to refugees from over 20 countries. If you are interested in recruiting a [...]
Island Team - February 2017 Each of our teams volunteering to help refugees in Greece is a bit different. Some are all from the same group or church, others are a smattering of individuals from all over the U.S. Each one ends up doing slightly different things to help refugees. But the stories and experiences [...]
The Refugees by Viet Thanh Nguyen I had high hopes for this book. I started reading it days after the travel ban had been put into place and then taken down. The feelings toward refugees were running high, and I was excited to read and review a book about a subset of refugees that I [...]
I am so very thankful. Shukraan (that means thank you in Arabic). I am still trying to put into words my thoughts and feelings about last week in Athens. The best summary I have is that it was a beautiful week, for in beauty there can be both joy and sorrow. The stories I heard [...]
I know of a refugee family from the mid-East who had to flee their homeland under threat of violent death. A tyrannical ruler had sent armed men to find and murder them. In fact, it was a heartless and bloody genocide. The thugs killed dozens, maybe hundreds in the town... the family barely escaped. They [...]
I’m a Chicago Cubs fan. Last week was a good week. I saw that over five million people attended the Cubs World Series victory parade. Someone told me it was the 7th largest gathering of people in world history. I have no idea if that’s true, but that IS a lot of people celebrating the [...]
Imagine a teenage boy whose country has been ripped apart by a war that has rocked the world. His family is destitute and eager to get out of a place where they are still being persecuted. The war has brought them nothing but poverty and death. They can’t afford to send everyone though, they can [...]
Chrissie is a mother of 4 and the life of the party. She and her family spent two months in Greece partnering with our refugee friends to feed the hungry, to entertain kids, and to love those dealing with grief and trauma past and present. She's fun, crazy, and a real person. Here are 20 questions [...]
