Cork migrant charity launches fundraiser to rehome Syrian families on Dingle Peninsula
The campaign aims to raise €20,000 to support the families’ integration in Ireland.
A fundraising campaign to rehome two Syrian families, currently living in Lebanon, to the Dingle Peninsula in Co Kerry has been launched by Cork migrant charity Nasc.
The campaign aims to raise €20,000 to support the families’ integration in Ireland.
To raise awareness, people are being asked to run, walk, or cycle anywhere in Ireland or abroad until September 5. The collective goal is 4,029km — the distance between Damascus and Dublin.
Donations will help the families during their first two years in Ireland.
Maureen Power, 65, from Innishannon, a member of one Community Sponsorship group, said helping families settle has “been one of the best things” she has ever done.
The Community Sponsorship initiative allows local groups to directly assist in the resettlement of refugees fleeing conflict. It is led by the Irish Red Cross, Nasc, the Irish Refugee Council, and Doras, and is supported by the Government.
Maureen and her group formed in 2019 after a friend invited her to join. They were matched with a young Syrian couple living in a refugee camp in Lebanon.
The group raised funds to set up the family with essentials when they arrived. However, due to pandemic delays, the couple and their son only reached Ireland last year.
“They had spent a lot of their lives in a refugee camp, so they needed to learn how to pay bills, where to shop and learn English,” Maureen said.
“Their main issue was transportation. They didn’t know how to drive, and the infrastructure in rural Ireland isn’t great, so we do our best to get them where they needed to go.
“We also set them up with a doctor, dentist, bank account and told them how to get to the post office,” Ms Power added.
The retiree, who previously worked in finance, said the family — now with two children and living in Waterford — “are thriving here.”
“Of course, there are challenges — especially with the language — but they are settling in,” Ms Power said.
“They still have extended family in Syria and Egypt, and they miss them terribly. I have a son abroad, but I have the means and the passport to get to him if I want to; refugees often don’t,” she added.
Ms Power is now encouraging others to take part, saying that while she’ll “never save the world, doing something like this might help in some way.”
“When people hear about the Community Sponsorship Programme, we do come up against the usual argument that ‘Ireland is full’, but I don’t agree.
“We need people here to work in our hospitals, schools and other sectors. I ask people to consider all the Irish nurses and teachers working in places like Australia.
“We’re very fortunate here in Ireland; there are thousands of people around the world who need help."
To support the Community Sponsorship group’s efforts, click here.
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