Alpha Centre

Alpha Centre is based in Vathy town and has been the go-to community space for people living in the refugee camp over four years. The core work of Samos Volunteers is to offer informal educational activities, psycho-social support and safe spaces for people who find themselves stuck on the island for sometimes a long period of time. We aim to maintain a safe, dignified and creative space for everyone.

 

Alpha Land

Alpha Land is a five-minute walk away from the refugee camp based in Zervou which opened in September 2021. In both of our community centres we offer Greek, English, French and German language classes, as well as computer training and music classes. We also run wellness sessions, sports, art workshops and gardening activities.

 

Free Shop

Our free shop is located next to the Alpha Centre. People from the Samos camp are invited to come to the shop and choose their own clothes and shoes. This is a lifeline for many who have no form of income. We carry out two mass distributions during the year: a summer distribution and winter distribution.

We also use the shop to create emergency packs of dry clothing for Médecins Sans Frontières who operate an emergency response team for new arrivals landing on the island.

If you have non-food items that you wish to donate, please send an email to logistics@samosvolunteers.org.

 

Support to the LGBTQI+ Group

Samos Volunteers supports the Samos LGBTQI+ Group; a community of refugees and allies on Samos who advocate for LGBTQI+ rights worldwide and for the protection of asylum seekers self-identifying as queer.

The project aims to raise awareness of the discrimination faced by LGBTQI+ people in the Samos camp and facilitate the referral pathway for refugees in need of legal support and protection.