‘Special memories are made there.’
Beach of sanctuary: Dave Traxson and Rosemary Fox take a break
‘The sharing of food, music and song from different cultures was special.’
Wolverhampton Meeting is a Sanctuary Meeting, and has been arranging summer outings and holidays for local sanctuary seekers. We have access to a residential facility at Porthmadog, and were able to accommodate three groups for a short break. The guests were drawn from our City of Sanctuary drop-in centre, and included people from eleven countries, of eight different languages.
On the three trips there were sixty-eight participants, mostly asylum-seekers, and twelve volunteers. All had spiritually-uplifting experiences, with warm feelings of human connectedness.
The nearby marina turned our participants into eager photographers, taking images of friends and family against the lovely backdrops. It helped cement the relationships in the groups. Meals were shared, and prepared according to cultural requirements – the empty plates spoke for themselves. The sharing of food, music and song from different cultures was special and, on some evenings, created a bit of an inclusive party vibe.
Then, on the beach, paddling, digging holes, making sandcastles, playing beach games and laughing at the frolics and fun were a big joy of this ‘Beach of Sanctuary’ as we started to call it.
We worked daily on a ‘collaboration of kindnesses’, whether that meant people spontaneously tidying up or sharing the care duties of the children.
In addition to the holidays, Wolverhampton Quakers formed part of the team arranging day trips for sanctuary seekers and their families during the school holidays. On one of these outings we were guests of Clun Valley Quakers, who generously host a day out on a farm on the border between England and Wales. Special memories are made there. Over the years many friendships have formed between our sanctuary seekers and our Clun Valley hosts.
Salma, from Sudan, offered a response typical of our visitors: ‘Thanks for inviting us to this wonderful trip to the beautiful countryside valley; thanks for giving our children the opportunity to see and enjoy being in the countryside – wonderful experience. Thanks for the hospitality; food was amazing. Very grateful.’
In all these experiences a safe space is created for the time we spend together – a time of welcome and friendship, where sanctuary seekers can, for once, relax, have fun, and feel valued and respected. We are all truly blessed and enriched by these opportunities for shared encounters.
Comments
This is FANTASTIC. What a wonderful example.
By suehampton@btinternet.com on 3rd November 2022 - 9:13
Great venture, Rosemary and David.
Seems a lot of good fun was had by all.
By Rajan on 7th November 2022 - 22:17
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