I AM watching over three children and their mother as they sleep. She is breastfeeding her six-month-old baby boy, while his three-year-old sister and eight-year-old cousin cuddle together.

They are sleeping so deeply they don’t hear the storm outside. The rain is torrential and relentless. Every now and again their – entirely soaked through – father peeks through the door of the tent to make sure they are all okay.

His name is Kalin and he speaks fluent English so we chat as he helps us clean up outside. He describes how his brother-in-law and wife were murdered by IS just three weeks earlier for speaking out about them on social media.

He ran with their only child and his own. They hope to reach Germany.

Suddenly, the bus is here to take people to the Moria registration camp and there is panic as people think they are going to miss it. It takes several times to raise Kalin’s family from their exhausted sleep.

It’s my last day on the Greek Island of Lesbos. Six weeks ago, I launched a digital campaign to provide “Childhood Bags” with essential supplies for refugee children. They include a full set of warm clothes, underwear and socks, coats and shoes.

These are the immediate needs of people as they arrive off the boats from Turkey. They are often soaking wet and shaking with fear.

I’ve spent the past five days distributing them and helping refugees from the boats and nights looking after seriously ill babies sick from swallowing too much salt water.

A father robbed by smugglers said: “We will starve.” He’s probably right. Only those with financial means or great physical strength will make the journey to Northern Europe safely.

Molyvos – a tiny fishing harbour village of 800 people – has been the point of entry for more than 177,000 refugees this year and thanks to local restaurant owner Melinda McRostie and her Starfish foundation, it has become a momentary safe haven for refugees. They get food and somewhere safe to sleep.

The Northern Echo:

I used some donations to help open a small school – or Kids Corner – which I hope to staff with volunteers from home. It went from a urine-soaked tent to a place of safety within four hours. Pictures children drew for the walls included men putting a gun to their heads.

The Northern Echo:

 

At the other side of the island in the registration centre of Moria in Mytilini, unaccompanied children are kept in cages for several days with food thrown at them. Two young boys have attempted suicide after a week. There is inadequate shelter and, now the weather has turned, people’s feet are beginning to rot and toenails are falling off. The mother and children’s line has been tear-gassed because kids kept stepping out of line.

This is Europe in the 21st century. Camps ran by volunteers show more compassion and are better organised than ones by officials. I feel so ashamed.

From Mytilini these people will get a ferry to Athens and then attempt to walk through the Balkans to safety. It will take weeks and I fear many of the children could be walking to their deaths. I try to and convince them to wait the winter out in Athens. But they are frightened Europe will close the borders.

Only two are heading to Britain. They have relatives who’ve lived here for many years and can give them work.

“They will help me get a job,” said Ahmed, a 42-year-old chemical engineer from Damascus, “I can do any kind of factory work. I can keep my own family.”

These people are the moderate middle classes of the Middle East and they are fleeing because they will be killed if they stay. They are skilled and hard-working.

I’ve met doctors, teachers, engineers, lawyers and bus-drivers, all running together. One boat contained 26 members of the same family, aged from 78 to just three-months-old.

Now, back in the UK, I wait anxiously for my new friends to get in touch. So far I’ve had two messages. I worry about them all, but particularly the children I held, comforted and played with.

I’m planning future support for refugees and the volunteers in Lesbos.

If you’d like to help you can donate via my PayPal bethanyusher@hotmail.com and I will ensure it gets to local volunteer groups I have verified personally.

Or, alternatively, go to Lesbos and give a week of your time because you would be useful – especially if you have medical training, or speak Arabic or Farsi. You can contact me or volunteer groups directly.

I believe this is our generation’s Holocaust. Our great-grandchildren will judge us on the compassion we showed. If you can help, please do.

  • Bethany’s fee for this feature has been donated to the campaign.