Another month in lockdown has passed. Our team on the ground keeps improving OHF in order to have it ready for whenever it can be used again for its original purpose.
Construction
The classrooms between the two containers are now ready! See head picture of the newsletter. The construction is finished, the classrooms are painted and ready to be used. The school backyard is also soon ready to be visited by guests again.
We’ve had to think strategically about how we use the space and redesign the school so that we can socially distance and, in the future, accommodate more people. We decided to build a roof over the two shipping containers, which are parallel to each other, and cover the space in the middle. We’ve put the flooring, and have decided to build a moveable wall so we can create large or small spaces, depending on the needs of the community and the school.
We’ve also installed different wall partitions in the main hall, just like in the school. They will be used to make classrooms, such as for the computer class, or other activities in the main hall. We can move these walls depending on the needs. In addition to this construction, we have also covered with plexiglass the lounge area under the tree and the Makerspace; this will help with social distancing and will make a better use of spaces as people will be protected from the wind and the rain.
We are excited that we have new classrooms and that the school backyard is nearly ready to be used. We are thrilled with the quick and effective work of our volunteers Fisher, Max and Mohammed, as well as Michalis’ team of craftsmen, under the constant supervision of our coordinator Akis. Thank you so much, you are amazing! We cannot wait to see these spaces being used and full of life soon!
Paintings
Brand new multi-coloured flower pots have been installed. They bring colour to the concrete area near the shop. The painted-labyrinth-game we recently told you about has also had some more work done: there are now many more lemons and apples in the trees and several labyrinths inside the big labyrinth.
Daily life at OHF
Our partners MVI and the Makerspace continue to work within the grounds of OHF. Even during lockdown, together with the people doing construction, painting and collecting/sorting donations, OHF is a busy place. This gives us all hope that one day it will be a busy and happy place with lots of visitors again.
Registration process
One Happy Family is, like many other NGOs, still in the process of registering. We have been working on it for months now, collecting and providing all the necessary documents – but it takes a long time. We try our best to follow all the demanding requirements and hope to finish this process soon and continue to carry out important work in the island as a fully registered NGO.
Housing of community volunteers since New Year
Due to the horrific situation in the camp and the cold weather, our team on the ground decided to host our community volunteers since the beginning of the year and for the winter. They are now in different areas around Mytilini.