Finding Refuge

Mission

Everyone has the right to safe and secure housing. 

Finding Refuge's main mission is to end the homelessness of neglected displaced people such as migrants, refugees, and asylum seekers in Athens, Greece and beyond through either our accommodation program, emergency needs fulfillment, or vocational training and opportunities.

Since 2015, nearly a million displaced people have migrated to Greece seeking refuge from political persecution, war, and economic deprivation. Men, women, and children have arrived in Greece — the end of a treacherous journey from their home country — only to find that the conditions in this EU member state are far worse than they could have expected. Current EU and Greek policies have failed refugees, as funding cuts have effectively made many homeless. The situation is worse for those without documents or those in the process of applying for asylum.

In March 2019, our Finding Refuge—Ghania Chaudhry and Lena Azzouz who were university students—saw firsthand the severity of the housing crisis in Athens for the refugee and migrant community. Hundreds of people live in informal squats, where three or four families live in one room. These refugees are considered lucky because finding shelter in Athens is very difficult. We learned about the concerns that homeless families and individuals faced, attempted to find places of shelter. We reached out to local and international NGOs and visited numerous squats all around Athens, but were unsuccessful. Many of the accommodations that were free or subsidized by NGOs were at full capacity. One squat in Athens even had a sign up that said “Sorry, we are full.”

Upon on our return, we maintained contact with some of the families, realizing that the situation became worse as four squats were raided by the police. In an instant, hundreds became homeless. We knew we had to act. Thus, Finding Refuge was created. 

We have grown immensely from our humble beginnings in April 2019. We are now a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization in the United States, and implement our vision through three programs: Duniya, General Needs Assistance, and Language & Education Development.