We were a bit slow to start this morning and when we arrived 30 min late we had people waiting. We were really happy to see the Africans waiting to see us. Most are from the Congo and Cameroon, some from Senegal, Eritrea, Gambia, and Sudan. Brian is fluent in French and they really liked [...]
Today went rather smoothly. We decided to limit our visit and saw 40 patients. Spending more time with each, Karen was able to do massage for some who were injured in bomb blasts and Mark did some acupuncture for stress and ptsd. Many just had colds and sinus issues - we gave them Tylenol, tissues and [...]
We met up with Omar this morning and he took us to see the Happy Family project - Wow - a great ngo based in Switzerland. They are trying to provide some normalcy to the refugees. They provide meals for up to 800 a day, they have a gym, a toddler play space, coffee/tea, a place [...]
We learned a lot our first day here and learned there is much to unravel ahead to understand the complexity of it all. Maneuvered the flight, upgrading to a van, visit to the local police station to register, met up with Omar in the morning and drove to Skila in the north. Our discussions with Omar [...]
Arrived in Athens - great seamless flight. Found Tama easily awaiting final team member from Istanbul. We leave at 5 am tomorrow for Lesbos. Word is many more refugees arriving due to Turkey / Syria escalation. We are carrying 300 lbs medical supplies and donations of new underwear and warm clothes. Drinking homemade wine, eating oranges [...]
