A world away from Squamish there exists a refugee camp that has for years been home to thousands of families abandoned by the society surrounding them, living in abject poverty and threatened every day by disease, malnutrition and violence.
This month local resident Kate Price and paramedics Lyndsay Kay and Kathryn Reid are holding a fundraiser to help make life a little more bearable at the Buduburam Refugee Camp in Ghana by building a chicken farm, and theyre asking for Squamishs help.
The paramedics will head to the West African refugee camp in April 2011 to establish The Poultry Project, and locals can help by participating in an art silent auction throughout the month of October at Zephyr Caf and attending a dance party at the caf on Sunday (Oct. 17) starting at 9 p.m.
Grassroots fundraisers like this are successful when each person donates a tiny bit of themselves, said Price. In this case, people just need to show up to the party, buy a drink, and check out some art, and theyll make a massive difference.
Among those offering a bit of themselves are local artists Aaron Black, Jean Gamilovskij, Jill-Marie Stokes, Katrina Bjornson, Korry Smith, Marissa Scheisser, Celia Clare, Paul Johnson and two of the kids from the camp, who are donating photography, paintings and fridge magnets, among other works.
The works are hanging at the caf ready to get scooped up by admiring patrons with generous hearts.
Every cent of the auction sales go towards the supplies needed to build the chicken farm, said Price.
The Bududuram Refugee camp was established in 1990 by the United Nations High Commission for Refugees to house more than 12,000 Liberians fleeing the First Liberian Civil War, then the Second Liberian Civil War, as well as Sierra Leoneans fleeing war in their own country.
After the second war ended in 2003, many of the refugees, including ex-child combatants, could not return to Liberia fearing more violence thus the camp continues to be occupied.
The UN ceased services to the camp and as of June 2010, ceased the refugee status for the 10,000 who reside there. As most of the refugees cannot legally work in Ghana, they rely on finding work within the internal market system of the camp to make an income.
Hence the necessity of a sustainable enterprise, which would be both a source of income and food for the vastly under-fed residents of the camp, said Price.
The eggs produced can be sold at the market and can also feed the palliative HIV/AIDS patients for whom they care as well as the kids in school and some of the known orphans in their recreation program.
Kay and Reid were the first locals to become involved with the camp through Children Better Way's (CBW), a grassroots Liberian Refugee organization working on camp.
We emailed asking if they were still accepting volunteers and they welcomed us with open arms, said Kay.
The pair fundraised and travelled to the camp in May 2009 and once there, realized just how dire the situation was. The CBW did not have sustainability as a non-profit they relied on international volunteers' money to keep them going but violent conflict kept the world at bay. So they asked how they could help.
They asked us to help start their Internet caf, said Kay. From the funds we raised, we were able to pay their electric bill and for Internet access, refurbish eight computers and pay for the materials and building of the Internet tower.
That initiative continues to bear fruit today.
The caf is still running, grossing around 200 to 300 [Ghanaian dollars] a month, which goes towards their programs, i.e. HIV/AIDS outreach, water and sanitation program, recreation and afterschool program.
Price became involved when the pair asked her to travel to the camp in April 2011.
It turns out Price probably cant go, but because of her big heart, she took this opportunity to help people she's never met plan a silent auction and a dance party, said Kay.
The community is invited to enter the silent auction at Zephyr Caf, 38084 Cleveland Ave. anytime during business hours over the month of October. Everyone is also invited to the community gathering and fundraising dance party on Sunday (Oct. 17) featuring DJ M.Y.O. and Chris Adams spinning until 1 a.m.
Kay said the event is more than just a means of raising funds.
Support isnt just financial, and this partys not about the people with money showing up, its about a community getting together to have a good time.
