Bridge2 spreads a bit of early Christmas cheer at festive fair
MONEY raised from a festive fair will go to help refugees and a medical clinic in Samos, Greece.
Founder of the Bridge2 charity Sarah Griffith organised the event with James Ferguson from Cooked.
The aim was to give islanders the chance to do some Christmas gift shopping from local boutique stalls, including Little Mama’s Bakery, Marriette Sarre, Penelope Hope and the Day Salon while raising necessary funds to help support the refugee crisis in Greece.
Also available were hand-made gifts from people in the countries Mrs Griffith visits and supports.
‘I recently got back from a visit to Samos where we took nine boxes full of Sudocrem and inhalers over to the tiny medical clinic there which just has one full-time doctor,’ she said.
‘The support I got for this project was amazing and when I went we helped out with basic things like hoovering cobwebs off the ceiling, putting up a privacy curtain, cleaning the waiting area, putting a TV in the waiting area so there was not a constant line of people asking when they can be seen.’
The hospital in Samos sees only the most dire of cases, so hundreds of refugees rely on the small team of staff at the clinic.
‘One of the big things we’ve done to help is pay the deposit and the first month’s rent on a house that visiting medics can stay in upfront and money from this fayre will help pay for the rent for a year.
‘A big problem for them had been finding and paying for their own accommodation, so they could only stay in Samos for a couple of weeks at a time. [The rented house] is not luxurious by any means but it will hopefully give them a basic base to go back to so they can put their all into helping these refugees.’
A carpenter and third-year apprentice from JW Rihoy are flying out to Samos on Sunday with Mrs Griffith to build an outdoor waiting room with a roof so the refugees seeking medical help from the clinic can wait under a shelter during the rainy season.
‘All the money raised from this fayre will go towards helping with these basic but vital projects and I am so grateful so many people have come forward to help.’ Mrs Griffith said.
