Syrian Refugee Relief Fund

This week marks five years since the outbreak of the civil war in Syria, which has claimed more than 270,000 lives, caused 4.8 million Syrians to flee their country as refugees, and displaced 6.6 million Syrians within their own country.

While last month’s the truce between government and opposition forces provides a hope for lasting peace, Syrian refugees throughout the Middle East and Europe face an uncertain future. Refugee camps are struggling to keep up with growing numbers of migrants, and several countries have reduced the number of refugees they’re willing to take in.

Thanks to your support of this relief fund, many refugees’ prospects are considerably brighter. Today I’d like to share three stories that illustrate the impact you’ve had over the last five years through our partners on the ground.

Since 2012, Japan Emergency NGO (JEN) has worked in Za’atari, Jordan’s largest refugee camp, where more than 80,000 Syrians reside. JEN has ensured access to clean water and sanitation, promoted hygiene measures to prevent disease outbreaks, and delivered supplies to help refugees weather the harsh winters.

Last fall, in an effort to promote greater collaboration and understanding among the camp’s residents, the local population, and NGOs, JEN organized a football tournament (or soccer, to our American readers). The tournament was a huge success, and in addition to fostering camaraderie, JEN used the tournament as an opportunity to distribute hygiene kits and teach daily hygiene practices to children through role playing.  

Due to changing admittance policies for asylum seekers, many Syrian families have found themselves in limbo, residing in camps in the Balkans until asylum opportunities improve elsewhere in Europe.

One such family recently arrived in a camp in Krnjaca, Serbia, just outside Belgrade, with three young children — five-year-old Muhamed, his younger brother Mamun, and their baby sister Arba. Since leaving Damascus a year ago, they’ve traveled between camps in Lebanon, Turkey, Germany, Croatia, and now Serbia in search of a safe haven.

Pomoc deci, a Serbian NGO supporting refugees in Krnjaca, welcomed them to the camp and made sure their family had necessary supplies for the winter—warm jackets and shoes, blankets, tents—and provided toys for the children and psycho-social assistance.

Food insecurity is a major issue facing many Syrian refugees. Since few are able to find employment in their host countries, they’re often wholly reliant on aid organizations in order to feed their families.

Near East Foundation (NEF) is improving this situation through cost-effective urban agriculture, and recently shared a story of their work with a woman named Araxi. She fled Syria three years ago with her family of four and now lives in Bourj Hammoud, a city outside Beirut, Lebanon. Like many of the 18,000 refugees in the city, Araxi’s family struggles to earn enough money to put food on the table in addition to paying for housing and school for her two children. With help from NEF, Araxi installed a vertical garden kit in her home and now is able to grow onions, garlic, thyme, marjoram, and mint, saving money she’d otherwise spend at the market while improving her family’s diet.

With support from more than 6,600 donors like you in 65 countries, these are just a few of the success stories you’ve helped make possible. Thank you so much for bringing hope to those in need these last five years.

Sincerely,
Britt Lake + the GlobalGiving Team

P.S. If you’d like to spread the word about the situation facing Syrian refugees and the vital work our partners are doing to help them, you can help by sharing this factsheet on social media.

Last week, we shared how your donations are making a difference on a large scale to help more than a dozen organizations in the Syrian Refugee Relief fund provide care to refugees. This week we wanted to give you the opportunity to meet the people, refugees and volunteers alike, whom your donations are impacting.

3,000 Refugees Arriving in Lesbos Each Day

This past year, 4.2 million refugees have fled their homes in Syria,  with hundreds of thousands seeking refuge  through the small Greek island of Lesbos.

The needs of refugees arriving vary from immediate medical aid to psychosocial support for families upon arrival. As the number of Syrian refugees arriving in Greece in 2015 started steadily rising, IsraAID quickly mobilized a team of volunteers to help on the shores. You can see a video account from Lesbos here.

Dr. Iris Adler and Melek Abu-Grara, have been on the front lines in Lesbos for months, tending to the immediate needs of refugees and bearing witness to heartbreaking tragedies and incredible miracles—sometimes both in the same day.

This past October, Abu-Grara and Dr. Adler spent a night with a grieving mother, who had lost her 8-month-old son earlier that day. Even after the long night of sorrow, they both went straight back to work in the morning; tending to the refugees arriving on rafts and boats from Turkey. Though the day started with sadness, it ended with joy as Dr. Adler and Malek assisted a Syrian woman who gave birth to a beautiful baby boy on the beach in Lesbos, hundreds of miles from her home. Alongside the IsraAID team, Dr. Adler and Abu-Grara tended to the new mother and her son, ensuring she and the newborn were safe until an ambulance arrived.

The Long Road From Syria to Serbia

2,500 kilometers: that’s how far 10-year-old Abdul walked in four months after fleeing his home and leaving his family behind in Syria to reach safety in Belgrade.

In Pomoc Deci’s latest update, Abdul recounted his journey, “My parents remained in Damascus to take care of my brothers and sisters. My father told me to go to Germany and he would find me there.”

Whether or not Adbul will be reunited with his family remains uncertain. "I'm afraid bombs might kill them. In my country is a war, it's horrible. I keep asking myself whether I would see them again. And if I get to Germany, would they manage to find me there," said Abdul.

Since arriving in Serbia, Abdul has found companionship among the older refugees, who have taken him under their wing and will be making the move towards Germany together. Even though Abdul is without his family, he has remained courageous and resilient in this time of overwhelming chaos.

As the Syrian refugee crisis worsens, stories similar to Adbul’s are becoming more and more common. Thankfully, high-impact organizations like Pomoc Deci and IsraAID are continuously working to provide the immediate aid and necessities refugees arriving in neighboring countries.

In 2015, your donations have helped courageous children like Abdul, they’ve provided new mothers with immediate medical care, and will continue to make a lasting impact into the new year. From the bottom of our hearts at GlobalGiving, we wanted say thank you, for both making a contribution and taking the time to learn about the escalating crisis in Syria.