Mark Campbell, a former volunteer with Refugee Action, looks back on his experiences mentoring a refugee and reminds us that we can all make a difference to the lives of refugees – one pie or poem at a time…
I’ve loved being able to be involved with Refugee Action. Having worked with humanitarian organisations in Afghanistan, Uganda and Congo for four years I was really excited to connect with Refugee Action when I returned to the UK. I got in touch with Refugee Action because I wanted to find a way to share some of the same hospitality with ‘exiles’ that had been shown me when I was an ‘exile’ in foreign lands. I also hoped that meeting someone with intimate experiences of their homelands would be reassuring for refugees orientating themselves in an unfamiliar world.
I spent a year in Manchester mentoring an Iranian man who had been given political asylum in the UK having fled persecution in his homeland. Over the course of a year over weekly coffees we were able to share stories and experiences.
As he was nearing retirement age with no experience of working in the UK and a limited grasp of the English language he was struggling to find work. But he was a talented writer and he would entertain me by taking me through the intricate details of the plot of his latest fiction. As a proud man who was crushed by his dependence on state support he was able to reclaim his self-esteem and sense of identity by sharing his art with someone who was interested.
I’ve since left Manchester and moved to Brighton to run a business with some friends. We are called ‘Higgidy’ and we make pies for some of the high-end supermarkets.
Although the mentoring programme I was previously involved in doesn’t run in Brighton, I’ve been able to keep involved with Refugee Action by supporting some of the fundraising and networking events that they run with pies! And as the team at higgidy keeps growing we’ve been able to give a job in our washing-up team to an Afghan refugee who had been homeless in the area.
It’s really special to be able to be involved in some small way in making the UK a more welcoming place for refugees and asylum seekers.
If you’d like to volunteer with Refugee Action, or would like to support one of our events, please email us at volunteering@refugee-action.org.uk or giving@refugee-action.org.uk. We’d love to hear from you.
Posted by Sara Ayech