Summer in Greece. Admit it— with temperatures dropping in most of the United States, most of us are already thinking of Greece 2017 and thinking about which beach we want to spend our vacations on this summer.
Not Helen Zahos.
She’s definitely planning and packing— but her trip isn’t a vacation. She’s traveling half way across the world from her native Australia to save human lives in Greece.
Helen will become a volunteer nurse, lending her time and expertise to care for some of the most desperate people on the planet— refugees who have fled war and bloodshed back home and have risked everything— only to find themselves stuck in overcrowded refugee camps in Greece. Click here to see Helen’s fundraising page for her upcoming trip to Greece.
And this won’t be the first time she’s doing it.
Last year, Zahos took a leave of absence from her job as an emergency nurse in Australia to travel to Greece to volunteer at a refugee camp, offering her medical expertise to the thousands of refugees that were arriving on rafts on Greek islands.
She brought with her thousands of dollars that she raised from strangers, family and friends after a successful crowdfunding campaign and she used that money for medical equipment and supplies for the sick and injured— but also to re-stock the Greek medical centers that were ill-equipped to handle such an influx of refugees arriving.
Helen witnessed some horrifying things during her time in Greece last year, including a dreaded night when a raft sank and dozens of people drowned. She held infants in her arms, giving wet and tired moms a break after a harrowing journey across the sea lent her shoulder to more than one person to cry on.
She was also present at Idomeni in northern Greece when the border was closed, leaving thousands of people stranded in make-shift tents, living in fields and being treated at mobile medical units.
Helen’s work has been recognized far and wide. She was recently honored in Melbourne with a community service award by the Hellenic Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry and her story is included in a documentary called Angels, about volunteers in Greece.
Angels Trailer Version 2 from David Gilchrist – 4G Productions on Vimeo.
She is once again turning to family, friends and strangers to raise funds for medical supplies and equipment that she will take with her to Greece.
1 comment
Great story, a wonderful person.
In the wake of trump’s view of immigrants and Syrian refugees, and the recent burning of the refugee camp by Greeks, it’s uplifting to hear this story. Real unselfish Judeo Christian values.