"Nefeli 3" shelter opened its doors on October 15th, 2019. The first guest was a child from Pakistan, who happily settled in the area. Other children from Pakistan, Bangladesh, India, Afghanistan, and Iraq arrived in the following days. The company grew and the reception and welcome of the children and the people who staff the team were very moving. The group of children now consists 30 minors and it is expected to grow.
Shelter's teachers have scheduled a full and constructive program with two classes for Greek language lessons and one class for English language lessons. In addition, painting and photography classes are delivered every week by volunteer residents of the area! Five of the children were enrolled and attend classes at the local High School and at this stage efforts are being made by the teachers to register more children at school. The daily life of young students at school and their coexistence with locals , gives them the opportunity to get to know better the Greek culture and to develop friendships and relationships with people from our country.
The daily life in the facilities of the structure is evolving smoothly and in fact, children have taken the initiative to participate in the cleaning and the care of the places where they are hosted. Particularly, several children offered to assemble and fix the furniture given to them, together of course with the assistance of the shelter's staff members. In their free time, they play chess, board games and utilize the stationery they have at their disposal, making artistic creations. Staff members have created a gym space for the little guests, which is currently equipped with various fitness equipment. The special love that many of the children have for cricket pushed the members of the house to provide equipment for the game and now many of the children are engaged daily in this sport, in a stadium located in the area.
On February 7th, an excursion was organized with the participation of all the guests. The 30 children visited Edessa and Vergina, where they enjoyed a wonderful meal at a local restaurant, while they had the opportunity to take a tour in the Royal Macedonian Tombs of Ancient Vergina. The boys were impressed by the exhibits they saw in Vergina but also by the picturesqueness of Edessa and did not stop taking photos!
The willingness of the children to participate in activities is very high, with most of them showing particular interest in sports and excursions! As a result, with the arrival of March, the children visited the Museum of Wax Figures of Kastoria and took a long walk in the city enjoying the beautiful weather. For this reason excursions, visits to museums, hiking trips and participation in educational programs of private organizations are scheduled for the near future.