Supporting Disaster Relief projects by ShelterBox

Photo: ShelterBox in Syria. Photo credit: ShelterBox

Here is the letter received from ShelterBox earlier in October 2020:

“Thank you for supporting ShelterBox. Your club’s donation of £590 has enabled us to provide shelter for people in the face of disaster. Right now, all of our lives are being affected by Coronavirus in some way, but those living in refugee camps or in makeshift settlements are particularly vulnerable. Shelter now means more than ever.

Here at ShelterBox, we’re adapting how we work as coronavirus creates a whole new level of risk for vulnerable families who have lost their homes. We know how to support people to build emergency shelters and reduce congestion in crowded camps. We’ve been doing that for years. Now, we need to react fast and use our experience and expertise in new ways – providing shelter to help slow the spread of coronavirus in crowded camps and towns.

The potential impact of the pandemic in places where we’re already working – like crowded camps and makeshift settlements in Syria, Ethiopia and Burkina Faso – is terrifying. These are places where many people are already vulnerable. Where health care facilities are either non-existent or struggle to cope with demand at the best of times. 

With support like yours we are able to help. ShelterBox will provide tents and shelter kits that can help people practise social distancing measures. Together with our blankets, sleeping mats, water filters and cooking sets we can help to keep people warm and dry with the ability to create meals and have clean water - helping families to stay as healthy as possible.  

Global travel restrictions are making it tougher for us to undertake all of this vital work. However, our links with local partners worldwide, combined with our storage of shelter materials and tools in multiple locations globally, means we are still able to get shelter to the families who need it most – and we’re doing everything we can to make sure that continues to happen. 

We are finding new ways to tackle the challenges we face, an example of this is in Syria, where we are now providing hand soap and wash basins in addition to our essential shelter aid. 

With ongoing support like yours we will be able to do more. So once again, on behalf of the ShelterBox team, thank you to everyone at The Rotary Club of Thame and District for supporting ShelterBox.”

During the time of the pandemic, Rotary Club of Thame & District and Phoenix Community Club members have been meeting safely online and have been welcoming 5 new members since March 2020. The club’s doors are largely open to welcome new volunteer members.

To find out more about the Rotary Club of Thame & District or Phoenix Community Club or how to join, please visit www.thame.rotary1090.org or www.facebook.com/thamerotary or www.facebook.com/phoenixcommunityclubthame