A completely overcrowded camps with poor hygienic conditions: the images from The refugee camp of Moria on the Greek island of Lesvos were already in front of the Corona-crisis for horror. Help is urgently asked for. For the children in the camp of an organization in Gröbenzell is.

Gröbenzell – Two weeks was Valeska Gleser in August last year on Lesvos. The previous size zellerin, who now lives in Herdecke in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, has found there traumatized children, under appalling conditions, lived. "There are hardly any opportunities to retreat, in the tents mattress mattress is," says the 36-Year-old. In the summer, the atmosphere was still relatively in order. "But you could clearly see that the States in case of rain or cold can be bad."

Hard

Gleser was in the order of "Start International" on Lesvos. Some of gröben Zeller had begun in 2006 under the umbrella of the Elisabeth-Gast-Foundation to help children after Wars, natural disasters, or escape. "We take care of children wherever you trauma need to process tables experiences," says Myrtha Faltin from the Start of the International Board of Directors. 2008, since then, purely by donation-funded organization was officially founded and has played worldwide from Georgia, Libya and Haiti to Nepal and the Philippines, around 150 missions.

protection in the camp

In the Camp of Moria, the size Zeller helpers are rooms for the end of 2018 worked. In the context of their use there so-called Child Friendly Spaces to be built – i.e., spaces in which children in the midst of Chaos protection and security, as well as child directed speech can find. In small Teams of six to seven people, the helpers promote the psychological resilience of traumatized children.

The artistic-educational work is at the centre – hence the special spelling of the Name, such as Faltin explained: "the Start is, that we leave when we are needed." The organization is writes your name with a uppercase WAY (English for art). So, actually, so: stART International.

The helpers are part of a network of therapists and educators, all of which are also artistic areas of focus. There are art therapists, Gleser, in turn, is a music teacher and plays the harp. The camp in Lesvos is divided into several areas.

"There is an area with young people, with women with children and one for women only," says the former size zellerin. For this purpose, a so-called Safe Zone in which unaccompanied minors come to life. "That's where you come in without an escort."

games in a small space

For work, the volunteers have tried to establish a rhythm and a structure in the life of the frightened children. In the morning, the children outside of the tent city were able to Tinker in the jungle, sing, dance, or bracelets tie. In the afternoon, then went to work in the very confined areas of the camp. "Due to lack of space we have made here, for example, concentration games, what is the place blazes up."

For she was not finished working with the commitment of Lesvos, as for other helpers, too – but. In April of this year, 47 unaccompanied children and young people from Afghanistan, Eritrea and Syria from the Greek Camps to Germany were flown out. The refugees at the age of four to 17 years were in Bad Essen in the Osnabrücker Land three weeks in quarantine, where they were also supervised by Gleser and her colleagues. For some children, there was joy, as they recognized the T-Shirts of the helpers who had helped them in the Camp.

An encounter stayed with Gleser hanging: A mother has seen after three years of their four-and six-year-old children again, after they had been kidnapped by her father in Iraq. "For the mother, it was a great experience, even if the Little one has recognized you again."