Posted on

Iris Center Update

Dear all Iris center friends 🙏🌷🥰

I want to say thank you so much to all of you for doing an amazing job in this surreal time. I want to say a special thank you so much to sister Shirley and sister @Ruhi Lauren Akhtar for continue to do aid distribusjons under the current difficult circumstances. Without their heroic effort the Iris center team would not be able to help 🙏🥰

We’re facing so difficult times this days and it’s very important we stay together and support each other 🌷
I can’t imagine how difficult it is for you guys in the camp. I daily get messages from people in need of everything and they tell me about that they’re starving 😓
We’ve had the possibility to distribute some strollers in Vial, and we’re constantly working on distributing aid to the people in need …

We also do distributions in the apartments as usual with toiletries, pampers, milk powder and porridge powder. We continue helping mothers giving birth at the hospital with toiletries, pampers, clothes and strollers.
Iris center teams work is a collaborative project without all our supporters, friends, donations of aid and money we would not be able to help – a big thank you so much to all of you 🙏🌷🥰

Thank you so much to the other organizations we cooperate with:
✨ Our Czech friends
✨ Carry The Future
✨ Chios Eastern Shore Response Team – CESRT
✨ Støttegruppa for Iris senter
✨ Refugee Biriyani & Bananas
✨ and many good hearted friends

Thank you so much to all Iris center team members – together we’re stronger 💪😍

Stay safe, take care with clean hands 🙌🙏🥰

We always need donations so please donate if you’ve the possibility 🙏

Every penny is used where it’s most needed for our sisters and brothers on the run 👍🌷

Thank you so much in advance 🌈

The Iris center team is an registered Norwegian NGO situated on Chios, Greece.

Org.nr. 921832559
Account number 1506.27.12330
International account number
NO77 1506 2712 330
BIC (Swift-address) DNBANOKKXXX
Vipps nr 584206
PayPal account
https://www.paypal.me/iriscenterchios

or use the button:

Happy Easter 🐇🐥🐣🥰

Please share:
Posted on

Dear all Iris Center supporters

Dear all supporters of Iris center team 🙏🌷

Yesterday the team distributed men’s clothes to about 120 men in Vial. We prioritized the new arrivals from the last weeks. Because the Iris center team are so honored to have residents from Vial in the team, we’re able to locate the new arrivals the day after they’re arrived and have been registered and give them what they need.

We gave out:
– trousers
– shorts
– t-shirts
– shirts
– belts
– traditional dresses
– shoes

Thank you so much to our friends from Germany, “The Refugees Foundation” and UK, “The Ripple Effect, Lancaster”. Without donations from you, we would not be able to help our sisters and brothers on the run. Thank you so much 🙏

As usual under a distribution, we chat with people in the line. The team found out that the new arrivals needed toiletries and strollers. Thus, we decided there and then, to hurry back to the container area and pick up strollers and distribute them. We also decided to give out toiletries to the new arrivals today.

We ended our day eating dinner at the cozy taverna Pinaleon in Karfas. The dinner was a donation from Sølvi Sinkaberg and her organisation, HÅP!
Sølvi and her organisation have supported the team for more than a year and is Iris center teams spinal cord 🙏🌷🙌💕

Please feel free to donate to our work for refugees on Chios:

Paypal: https://www.paypal.me/Iriscenterchios
Or
Vipps: +47-90558699

Thank you so much in advance 🙏

Janne Hegna
Iris Center, Chios

Please share:
Posted on

Thank you for all donations !

Yesterday the team cleaned and sorted a lot of toys that we’ll distribute one of the days. The spring is coming so the weather is getting warmer. The team wanted to go for a swim. We went to Karfas beach 🏝. Afterwards, we went to Limoni Taverna for a late lunch. A great taverna in Karfas.

Today the team distributed kids clothes to more than 200 kids in Vial, kids clothes to people in two locations outside Vial. The kids was so happy to get nice summer clothes donated from the German “Refugees Foundation”.

We visited the mother with the new-born twins. It turned out that she didn’t have any milk powder or food 😓 So we went and bought it for her.

I’m so happy that the Iris center team are able to react and fill the gaps when we discover them.

Thanks to all the donations from the amazing Iris center team supporters, we can do our best for our sisters and brothers on the run – EVERY DAY 🙌💗😃

Janne Hegna,
Iris Center, Chios

Please share:
Posted on

Iris Center filling gaps in the refugee work

The Iris centers policy is to help those who needs it and fill gap concerning the refugees crisis on the island of Chios and also others in need.

Wednesday 24th April the team prepared and distributed clothes for women and men at two locations outside the camp. It’s about 30 families that for some reason is moved from Vial to an apartment or actually in many cases only a small room. The reason can be new born baby or babies, some kind of illness, disabilities of different kinds, war wounds etc.

Because it’s not so many people they’ve more time to choose items and we’ve more time to talk with people which is very nice.

Many of the families in the apartments feel forgotten… In Vial they’ve their community, friends and volunteers helping them with clothes and toiletries.

The Iris center team will follow up the apartments closely with aid and also help with other things if it’s needed as the twins mother.

While distributing to the apartments we found out that a mother didn’t had any food… We went to the supermarket and bought what she needed.

Yesterday 25th April we distributed women’s clothes to the new arrivals in Vial and also some more summer items to the women that needed.
Amir made a list over the new arrivals that needed strollers and baby clothes. We went back to the container area and prepared and picked up what was needed and went back back to Vial to distribute it.

The strollers to the new arrivals in Vial and the food to the twins mother are donated by Kristin Omnes and Thora Lise Roppestad. The clothes are donated by the German team Refugee foundation and The ripple effect, Lancaster.

To be able to help our sisters and brothers on the run – we’re completely dependent on the amazing Iris team supporters. The team needs donations but we also appreciate so much all the good words from you. It gives so much energy and makes us go on every day.

THANK YOU SO MUCH ☺️🙏🌷

Please share:
Posted on

A new volunteer from Norway Mette Gulbrandsen

Yesterday 23th April the Iris center team started the day welcoming a new volunteer from Norway Mette Gulbrandsen – thank you so much for joining the team again. We’re looking so much forward to working with you.

Every morning we’ve a morning meeting where we decide who is going to do what. Yesterday we decided to store all our winter clothes to one container, because the weather is getting warmer. Amir, Baktash, Rabi, and Zohur wanted to take the responsibility for this.

Shirley is the toiletry coordinator and take care off the toiletries and make sure we don’t run out of some items. Yesterday she prepared toiletries to the six Albanian families and to the single mother with the new born boys. She also prepared a big bag with clothes to them.

Mette and I picked up Abu and bought a twins baby stroller to the mother with the boys. We had all the tings for the mother in the car and went to the hospital.

We got very surprised – the mother has left the hospital and she gave birth 19th April. We started to look for her and found her in an apartment with to new born babies 2kg and 45cm. She had a cesarean section of twins and still had to leave the hospital after only four days…

All the clothes was to big – so we bought some premature clothes for the babies. We’ll help her as much as possible.

In the end of the day we gave out toiletries to the Albanian families.

Thank you so much to everybody that support our team 🙏🌷💕

Please share:
Posted on

Women clothes distribution

Iris center team distributed clothes to all the women in Vial refugee camp on Thursday.

The clothes was given by the Refugee foundation from Germany.

We gave out
– trousers
– leggings
– scarfs
– tops
– abajas
– jumpers
– bra
– underwear

Thank you so much to all that made the distribution possible!

Please share:
Posted on

Sorting and counting

Today we have been sorting and counting for tomorrow’s distribution of clothes for men. We have also been giving out baby bags made by Sølvi Sinkaberg, strollers from Kristin Gjelsvik and Pia Simonsen, and some blankets from One Family – No Borders. We gave out a baby bag to a one day old baby girl at the hospital.

We counted how many boxes and how many pieces we have of tops, trousers and traditional clothes for men.

We have so many clothes in our storage area and we really want to get them out to the people that should have them. Now the team is working hard to get it all out so they will get what they need.

We are hoping it will be a peaceful distribution where people will be happy.

Please share:
Posted on

Leaving the old Iris Center buildings

Today we officially moved from the Iris Center buildings.

We moved all our things from the old Iris Center buildings to our new storage area. We had to use two trailers to move everything, but with good teamwork it was possible. The team was working so hard and we are so proud of everyone in our team!

We are actually more happy than sad that we now have to move. We all look at this as a new beginning… A new fresh start!

We can’t wait to start a new and even better version of the Iris Center. We believe it will be a lot better than what we had. Now, we have more opportunities and more experience!

Thank you for giving us the opportunity to start a new and better center for the refugees. This is the beginning of something great!

PEACE and LOVE from Iris Center team <3

Please share:
Posted on

Biggest distribution

Now we just finished the biggest toiletry distribution we have ever had!

We worked from around 10 in the morning until 7:30 in the evening!

We are so proud of our hard workers! You are really wonderful people!
GOOD JOB!

Here is some photos from today!

Please share: