Help house displaced people with mental health challenges
Athens, Greece
Displaced people seeking asylum in Greece face a continuous struggle against indifferent bureaucracy and a lack of the resources required to meet basic human needs. Yet these difficulties can be even harder to overcome for those with mental health challenges. Neither the Greek government nor the UN offer any kind of meaningful support to this demographic, and the scarce help provided by local NGOs is usually on the other side of a lengthy waiting list. Many asylum seekers with mental health difficulties are often labeled as difficult or uncooperative by government accommodation programmes that are meant to support them while they await their international protection procedures. As a result they are routinely transferred from camp to camp or are kicked out entirely and told to seek accommodation in the cities where they are at risk of falling into homeless on dangerous and unfamiliar streets.
The few that manage to be accepted into government accommodation for vulnerable people, find a one-size-fits-all system, living with strangers in crowded or unsuitable accommodation with insufficient time periods of support. These accommodation programmes have also been known to withdraw their support without warning and also have unjust mass evictions. While trying to access or maintain their spot in a government accommodation programme, displaced people may also be struggling with the debilitating effects of severe trauma, and the extended struggle of never having a place to feel safe, never having the mental space to begin to reckon with past and present experiences and imagine a way forward. In such cases a vulnerable displaced persons only option for receiving treatment could be institutionalisation, at the cost of any chance at autonomy.
Chamomile Housing Project (the operational name of Amigos de Ritsona Housing Project) provides holistic and supportive accommodation to displaced people with mental health difficulties as the first and most crucial step towards mental wellness. Participants in the programme receive financial support with rent and bills in independent apartments in the city, which guarantees a safe and secure foundation for their lives. In addition to accommodation, the programme includes weekly psychosocial support meetings to help participants to build a plan for their present and their future, as well as weekly seminars on accommodation integration that cover the practicalities of living independently in Greece. Chamomile is entirely person-centred; the programme is built with the active involvement of each resident and in cooperation with the psychologists in partner organisations who support them. Rather than providing temporary shelter without addressing underlying issues, Chamomile is dedicated to providing participants the space and stability to build their own autonomy, their own sense of safety, and a home within themselves, for the rest of their lives.
As our existing funding comes to an end and the pressures of covid continue to stretch our services and those of the other organisations our participants rely on, we need to raise money to continue to pay the rent, bills and food for those we support.
Please support our fundraising campaign with whatever you are able to spare, either as a one-off donation or with a recurring donation – which can help bring sustainability to our project.
Anonymous
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$12,000.00
Funding Goal -
$0.00
Funds Raised -
0
Days to go -
Campaign Never Ends
Campaign End Method
Product Description
Athens, Greece
Displaced people seeking asylum in Greece face a continuous struggle against indifferent bureaucracy and a lack of the resources required to meet basic human needs. Yet these difficulties can be even harder to overcome for those with mental health challenges. Neither the Greek government nor the UN offer any kind of meaningful support to this demographic, and the scarce help provided by local NGOs is usually on the other side of a lengthy waiting list. Many asylum seekers with mental health difficulties are often labeled as difficult or uncooperative by government accommodation programmes that are meant to support them while they await their international protection procedures. As a result they are routinely transferred from camp to camp or are kicked out entirely and told to seek accommodation in the cities where they are at risk of falling into homeless on dangerous and unfamiliar streets.
The few that manage to be accepted into government accommodation for vulnerable people, find a one-size-fits-all system, living with strangers in crowded or unsuitable accommodation with insufficient time periods of support. These accommodation programmes have also been known to withdraw their support without warning and also have unjust mass evictions. While trying to access or maintain their spot in a government accommodation programme, displaced people may also be struggling with the debilitating effects of severe trauma, and the extended struggle of never having a place to feel safe, never having the mental space to begin to reckon with past and present experiences and imagine a way forward. In such cases a vulnerable displaced persons only option for receiving treatment could be institutionalisation, at the cost of any chance at autonomy.
Chamomile Housing Project (the operational name of Amigos de Ritsona Housing Project) provides holistic and supportive accommodation to displaced people with mental health difficulties as the first and most crucial step towards mental wellness. Participants in the programme receive financial support with rent and bills in independent apartments in the city, which guarantees a safe and secure foundation for their lives. In addition to accommodation, the programme includes weekly psychosocial support meetings to help participants to build a plan for their present and their future, as well as weekly seminars on accommodation integration that cover the practicalities of living independently in Greece. Chamomile is entirely person-centred; the programme is built with the active involvement of each resident and in cooperation with the psychologists in partner organisations who support them. Rather than providing temporary shelter without addressing underlying issues, Chamomile is dedicated to providing participants the space and stability to build their own autonomy, their own sense of safety, and a home within themselves, for the rest of their lives.
As our existing funding comes to an end and the pressures of covid continue to stretch our services and those of the other organisations our participants rely on, we need to raise money to continue to pay the rent, bills and food for those we support.
Please support our fundraising campaign with whatever you are able to spare, either as a one-off donation or with a recurring donation – which can help bring sustainability to our project.
Anonymous
| ID | Name | Amount | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1244 | Listing Agent | [email protected] | |
| 1215 | Listing Agent | [email protected] |
