We welcomed over 140 members to this meeting and had an incredible response with many saying they felt humbled. We heard from 2 of the 5 founding members of SAB, Samera Zeitoun, Samara Atassi and Bara’a al Dalati. All 3 are Syrian born but now live in the North West of the UK.
Samera told us how she experienced the revolution in Syria in the 80’s as a child and had to leave the country for Saudi Arabia with her parents. She moved to the UK in the early 90s and has 2 sons. She had great hope for the Arab Spring but hope fell to despair as they saw the destruction of their country and so many killed or missing, imprisoned or leaving the country as refugees to Jordan. Samara, a qualified pharmacist had to leave Syria in fear of her life due to her humanitarian work, she retrained, moving to the UK in 2014 and has taken on the management side of the charity. She has two younger children. Bara’a has only been with SAB for 2 years since she arrived in the UK having to leave her family behind.
Samera and Samara have been spending time in Jordon over the last 10 years. All 5 women founders would take it in turns to leave their families behind and travel to Jordon. The Zaatari refugee camp for Syrian refugees is the largest in the world with a population of 80000. And the UNHCR list a further 750000 refugees in Jordan. They spoke of how the displaced Syrians had left good homes and a country that had a very high standard of education for its citizens to find themselves with very few possessions or clothes and having to live in tents in a desert with no water or toilet.
They set up a rehabilitation centre and provided prosthetic limbs for those in need. They recounted personal stories of young children who had lost limbs. One boy was desperate to swim even though he had lost both legs, one arm and the sight in one eye. When he got in the water, they realised he couldn’t swim but were able to provide him with coaching.
They have helped children overcome their difficulties and provided an education for them but Samara told us of how despite large numbers of their students achieving very high grades at the equivalent to our A levels they do not have the funds to allow them to continue their education to University level. The UNHCR only provides about 30 scholarships when they have over 1000 students who are desperate to continue their studies.
Women, many of whom had never worked before and arrived in Jordan without any clothes or possessions. By opening 2 centres, with 3 sections, one for cooking, one for sewing and one for training, offering many courses, soap making, hairdressing and on computers, they found that when the women worked together with other women it built their confidence.
As well as working directly with the families in Jordan they have tried to match them with families in the diaspora who can sponsor a family and help them directly. Many medics have gone out to Jordan to offer support where they can. The charity often asks for a specific skill set and try to find the best fit for a particular need.
Both women have faced many challenges, sometimes in dangerous situations but both feel they have to continue until such time as the situation improves and the people can return home. They have taken young people from the UK to the camps to let them see for themselves how life is in the hope that they will appreciate the good life they have in the UK.
Samara ended the talk with these words:
“Our goodness does not come from what we have but our goodness comes from what we give”.
You can see the videos shared during the evening. The first one does carry a warning. There is also a link to a document giving more detail of the work of Souriyat without Borders and a link to a Just giving page in case any individual would like to support their work.
Comments from our members:
I can feel your passion – I admire your dedication and commitment.
God bless you for your love and compassion
You make me feel very humble and thankful for my life which has been so good. Thank you for your determination to make things better for the displaced people of your country.
It is heart breaking to see the devastation caused by the war, and the impact on the lives of your countrymen and women. Well done to you all for the work that you are doing to try to make a difference to their lives.
You have achieved so much. Inspiring women indeed. Thank you for telling us about your work.
SAB – Short Introduction Video – Part 1
This is the link for the just giving page if you feel that you would like to make a contribution https://www.justgiving.com/souriyat-across-boarders