In May this year I had the good fortune to be invited to Syrian Refugee Camps in Lebanon. This was to film some short documentaries about life in the camps to help raise awareness for a charity that I am supporting for my upcoming 700K Arctic Mountain Bike race in Alta, Norway.
More on the challenge here: https://www.outspire.org
I wanted to share an update in the camps, and a lesson I learned from the families I interviewed.
First, sadly the update is that this week there has been a fire in the Refugee Camps in the Bekaa Valley. This fire was lit by a stove in one of the tents that unfortunately spread across the rest of the camps rendering 102 families homeless, once again.
(photo by Qab Elias Emergency Services)
The charity I am supporting provides resources that will be helping people in the area recover from this, so any / all help there is much appreciated. 100% of the donations goes directly to the resources required.
In meeting with the Syrians in the area a number of families shared that the important thing for them to keep going in this trying time is to not lose hope. To me, this came as a raw, and powerful message from people who have seen and experienced far more than most of us can imagine.
One syllable, with the power to bring people together and believe that they have a future for themselves and their children in a crisis. Hope.
I learned so much on that trip - and I hope the insight from these incredible people can spread some inspiration to you in your life, as it has mine.
Thank you for reading,
Josh Stinton
Charity Adventurer