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Bristol aid box convoy teams up with Arcadia
Volunteers from across Bristol have teamed up with world famous Arcadia Spectacular to take more than 300 aid boxes to one of the smaller refugee camps in northern France, where there are 700 people stranded, including men, women, children and newborn babies.
The team of volunteers, led by former nurse Imogen Mcintosh from Ashley Down, will be taking boxes made up of food, toiletries, a stove, cooking utensils and other items which she says will “set up an individual with the basics they need to survive”.
“Initially we were going to Calais, but when we were contacted by a French volunteer at one of the smaller camps, we were told that there are men, women, children and newborn babies who have nothing and are not receiving any of the aid that’s currently going to Calais. We knew we had to go there and help,” Imogen adds.
is needed now More than ever
Bristol-based Arcadia, which recently played at Queen Square, have donated an articulated lorry, driver and fuel for the duration of the trip, which means the group will be able to take a huge amount of supplies to the camp, where conditions are described as desperate by aid workers.
The aid box convoy will set off from Bristol on October 9. Once they are there 20 of the volunteers will spend a week at the camp building shelters and doing anything at the camp to help, says Imogen.
The group are trying to raise £4000 to help pay for the stoves and fuel, the boxes and accommodation for the volunteers and transporting the lorry over to France. All the other vehicle in the convoy will be self-funded.
Imogen says she’s been touched by the generosity of people who have already donated more than £1000 to their Just Giving page and the huge amount of donations which have come in.
Leila Goodarzi and Dan Whitewood were abroad when they saw the group’s Facebook page and sent a message to say that they were getting married in January and had decided to use some of their wedding budget on buying 100 foil blankets and first aid kits for the refugees. Leila said that the crisis “puts spending money on wedding flowers into perspective”.
Full details of how to make an aid box are on the group’s Facebook page and completed boxes can be dropped off:
Monday October 5 – The Lazy Dog pub, 112 Ashley Down Rd, any time from 11am.
Tuesday October 6 – Unit 4, St Martin’s Court, Cole Road (off Feeder Road), Bristol BS2 0UA
Aid Boxes can also be collected on Wednesday Oct 7 if absolutely necessary.
Read more on Bristol’s response to the refugee crisis and 10 practical ways to help the refugee crisis