gregbrighton
New member
‘How we respond will live with us. That is why people want so much to reach out’
In Brighton, Clare Struthers saw her garage fill up within 24 hours of her offering it as one of five drop-off points in the city, and her eight Facebook friends leaped to 2,500. In Bath, friends Ian Wood and Jonathan May have accumulated enough donations to fill an industrial storage unit, although they still need a marquee for their plan to build a kitchen in Calais. In Peebles, Tracy Owens, Sara Maciver and Joy Espie filled a horsebox and have already raised double their target to pay for diesel, so are now filling a lorry, too.
A convoy of around 15 cars from Birmingham were on the 10.50am Eurotunnel train on Saturday; later trains carried at least two vans from Glamorgan, five cars from Glasgow and “around seven” from a church in Kent which was not sure how many had joined its group. On Monday, at least 40 vehicles will be leaving from Dalston in east London.
Everyone wants to do something or give something to help people at the closest refugee camp to Britain – the “jungle” at Calais, where around 4,000 people are waiting for a chance to find a new European home.
For weeks, individuals have been packing ad hoc collections of clothes, tents, blankets and foodstuffs into the back of cars or rented vans and heading to Calais, touched by the plight of the refugees they have seen. That grassroots movement exploded last week with the pitiful death of Aylan Kurdi along with his brother and mother.
“The response has been more than I could have ever imagined,” said Struthers, who put her family home forward as a donations collection point for Calais Action last week and has roped in her mum to help.
Good to see Brits taking initiatives even if the government drag their feet.
Claire Struther's Calais Action - Brighton Facebook
In Brighton, Clare Struthers saw her garage fill up within 24 hours of her offering it as one of five drop-off points in the city, and her eight Facebook friends leaped to 2,500. In Bath, friends Ian Wood and Jonathan May have accumulated enough donations to fill an industrial storage unit, although they still need a marquee for their plan to build a kitchen in Calais. In Peebles, Tracy Owens, Sara Maciver and Joy Espie filled a horsebox and have already raised double their target to pay for diesel, so are now filling a lorry, too.
A convoy of around 15 cars from Birmingham were on the 10.50am Eurotunnel train on Saturday; later trains carried at least two vans from Glamorgan, five cars from Glasgow and “around seven” from a church in Kent which was not sure how many had joined its group. On Monday, at least 40 vehicles will be leaving from Dalston in east London.
Everyone wants to do something or give something to help people at the closest refugee camp to Britain – the “jungle” at Calais, where around 4,000 people are waiting for a chance to find a new European home.
For weeks, individuals have been packing ad hoc collections of clothes, tents, blankets and foodstuffs into the back of cars or rented vans and heading to Calais, touched by the plight of the refugees they have seen. That grassroots movement exploded last week with the pitiful death of Aylan Kurdi along with his brother and mother.
“The response has been more than I could have ever imagined,” said Struthers, who put her family home forward as a donations collection point for Calais Action last week and has roped in her mum to help.
Good to see Brits taking initiatives even if the government drag their feet.
Claire Struther's Calais Action - Brighton Facebook
Last edited: