Turkey's benevolent nature: Helping refugees in Bodrum

Turkey has undoubtedly taken on the brunt of the refugee crisis, being a gateway for many forced to leave their war-torn countries, whose hopes for starting a new life in Europe catapult them into the illegal and treacherous sea-crossing to Greece from its southern shores. Despite the danger and the security measures in place, these desperate people, who are not only from Syria, continue to test these very dangerous waters. As a nation and as a culture Turks have always mobilized to help those in need as it is very much a part of their nature. There are endless individual stories of generosity that don't make the headlines, however the nomination of the entire town of Kilis for a Noble prize is evidence enough of the daily sacrifices Turks have made to accommodate their hurting neighbors.

News of the efforts made by international volunteers on the European side in neighboring isles, such as Lesbos, may have made more waves in the press, however, there are a wide number of new charitable and nonprofit organizations that are mobilizing to help refugees in Turkey and two such organizations were recently formed in Bodrum, just one of the Aegean provinces where assisting refugees on Turkish shores has very much become a way of life for locals.

Bodrum Humanity, or in Turkish Bodrum'da İnsanca Yaşam Derneği, is a charity organization that was started up last September by a group of Bodrum residents and namely chairperson Ayça Kubat. I had the opportunity to speak with the British national Tracey Dinning, just one of the 30 or so mix of Turkish and expat members that have been spending their days helping refugees in Bodrum, starting with delivering breakfast, clothes and personal hygiene items daily to refugees. In addition to holding regular meetings and workshops, such as on emergency response and post trauma, Bodrum humanity also holds fundraising and informative events such as film screenings. They collect donations of all kinds and when enough supplies are collected to fill a truck they will send it out to refugee camps in Izmir and Suruç on the Syrian border as well as to the neighboring Greek island of Kos. In addition, Bodrum Humanity has helped connect refugees to medical services by Medlife and Acıbadem Hospital has offered the foundation first-aid training.

I asked fellow expat Tracey what it was like volunteering her time to help out in her adopted homeland, and she said, "For me, seeing the refugees with no shoes, shoes too small and feet hanging over the back or wearing odd shoes, having to persuade them to swap shoes if a match is found on another person, so at least one of the could have a matching pair!" These are just some of the daily struggles this expat now contends with on a near daily basis. "The refugees have always been polite and so grateful. The first time I did a food handout, was a 10:30 p.m. one night, a truck arrived with hot food, which had been kindly donated from hotels in Bitez. They all queued beautifully, but once they could see the supplies were not going to last, I still have the image of all hands stretching out in desperation. We managed to get bread and water for those that did not get a meal and they were so grateful for that. People just appeared out of nowhere," explained Tracey.

Bodrum Humanity also offers certificates for high school and university student volunteers, making it a perfect opportunity for students to gain experience and merit and have the credit to show for it. I asked Tracey what are some of the ways people can help their efforts, to which she said, "I think if people can volunteer with teaching the children in the camp it will help keep the kids educated and help take their minds of the terrible situation. Also, to encourage the refugees in camp to be as involved as much as possible with any of the projects in the camps. Keeping the donations flowing and helping either behind the scenes or handing out the goodies. If possible, come volunteer with us!" Visit www.bodrumhumanity.org<\#60>http://www.bodrumhumanity.org<\#62> to be afloat of upcoming meetings or call their hotline at 0 530 098 3343 to help.

DAKUD (Maritime Search and Rescue Association) was formed in December by another group of around 30 to 40 Bodrum residents that plan to offer skilled assistance at sea in coordination with the coast guard. With doctors and former military officers amongst their founding members, this foundation's efforts are to acquire or use the boats at their disposal as well as their expertise in emergency response, rescue and search missions to work in coordination with the coast guard and municipality to assist in overwhelming situations, which are only expected to get worse in the warming months explains, DAKUD Assistant Board Chairman and former military professional Sabri Göktaş. In time, they also hope to extend their efforts to other seaside provinces or at least serve as an example as to how people can organize and assist on this side of the tragedy.

"I had seen many bodies before the photo of Aylan Kurdi circulated in the press and it is devastating. What we want to do is use our combined knowledge and expertise to help the best we can to ensure similar situations don't happen again," said Sabri. "At any given time, there could half a dozen boats stuck in dire straits in harsh weather in the sea and the coast guard may not have the capacity to reach everyone at the same time. We want to have our boats and search and rescue equipment ready and on hand for when they need us to assist," explained Sabri.

"These people don't understand the sea, they don't know how to swim and don't even know how to work the motor they risk their lives with yet with this dream of Europe, I have seen people repeatedly return to face these dangers on this illegal crossing. We are also putting our lives at risk, but we have the skills to help these people and to offer assistance when necessitated," Sabri tells me adding that they also continue to help providing clothing, blankets and supplies as well as all forms of on land assistance.

DAKUD is currently organizing acquiring the boats and equipment they will need to be ready and in the water by April. They have been allocated an office space at the Palmarina Bodrum yacht marina in Yalıkavak. They also have a similar Spanish organization Proactiva mobilized on the Greek isles composed of mainly professional lifeguards that has been volunteering for the past five months as honorary founding members. Aiming to concentrate on search and rescue missions, DAKUD seeks assistance in any way that can help them obtain the boats and equipment they need to set sail. To find out more about their activities visit their Facebook page and website at www.dakud.org.tr.