How You Can Help...
About
Oasis Cardiff is an organisation that aims to help Refugees and Asylum Seekers to integrate into their local community in Cardiff. We provide weekly cookery sessions, various women only sessions, craft sessions and language classes as well as a range of other activities. The kitchen is often the centre of our activities!
We opened on 30 September 2008. In the first three weeks we had between 25-44 visitors. Now that has increased to 100-110 visitors per day.
"Some of our visitors have included people from Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, Sudan, Mali and Congo, among many other countries."
Some have just arrived in Cardiff, whilst others have been here for a few years.
We have established links with the Community Police, Cardiff Council and other drop in centers. Sessions have been run by a variety of different organisations and continue to run throughout the year.
Those that come are welcome to give their ideas on how to improve our services.
Volunteering
Do you like sports? Cooking? Dancing? Children play activities? Are you a computer whizz? Maybe you just want to hang out and drink coffee with interesting people from across the globe? Or maybe you’re a keen gardener who can’t help getting your green fingers dirty?
Then we might have an opportunity for you!!
Oasis Cardiff’s volunteers come from wide variety of backgrounds and ethnicities and volunteer for a variety of reasons. Each of our volunteers bring their own unique skills and passion to the centre. This means we can run various workshops run by volunteers who are willing to give their time and energy to the project.
For more information regarding volunteer opportunities at Oasis Cardiff contact our Volunteer Coordinator at Sion@Oasiscardiff.org.
Donate
If you wish to support The Oasis Centre and make a contribution financially then please go here.
https://twitter.com/oasiscardiff
https://www.facebook.com/Oasis-Cardiff/
Words from Gareth...
How can we live in a world where communication and information is so readily available and still live in fear of something or someone that appears to be different from ourselves? It's very hard to write this and not barrage you with my frustration towards mainstream media, our supposed world leaders and TV celebrities that have no excuse for their ignorance. Racism comes out of a lack of understanding and a lack of compassion. The Oasis Centre is willing to take the time to understand and support their multicultural community with compassion and consideration for each individuals needs.
In the about section you can read who The Quiet Triumphs Project is dedicated to. "For the ones who's doors, arms, minds and hearts are open" very much refers to The Oasis Centre. After phoning Reynette (Co-founder of the organisation) who after 10 seconds exclaimed 'Come on down!' I knew I was going to find something special. I was welcomed into a building that was buzzing with warmth and safety. A building that is brought alive by the many different cultures within it, where stories are shared, games are played and support is given irrelevent of race, creed or colour. A building that's structural identity is Welsh but it's soul is universal. Our identity as a nation is not lost or under threat. It exists and has existed for centuries as a multicultural one.
The Oasis Centre is a place of opportunity. An opportunity that not only exists for the refugees seeking a new community and society to intergrate with, but also an opportunity that gives each of us a chance to expand our minds and develop our identities. With each person comes a story filled with history and culture, a story that can be shared if we are willing to listen. Each new perspective leads us in a direction laced with copious possibilities and a deeper connection to ourselves and the happiness we seek.
Borders may continue to form and nations to divide, but the only borders that will prevent us from progressing are the ones that we build in our minds.
If you like this check out...
The Sanctuary in Newport at http://www.bethelnewport.co.uk/sanctuary/
and
Swansea Bay Asylum Seekers Support at https://sites.google.com/site/swanseabassgroup/