After School Club is a safe space where children, aged 6-12, can come to learn basic literacy, math, wellness through creative expression, and interpersonal skills. Naturally, it seemed like the perfect venue for Collateral Repair Project to distribute colorful and beautiful quilts from Quilts Beyond Borders, thanks in collaboration with Salaam Cultural Museum.
Amman winters are extremely long with freezing temperatures. Since most of the buildings in the city are old, they lack any form of insulation or central heating. Gas is also an extremely expensive commodity if one can afford a kerosene heater. Now, imagine these living conditions as an urban refugee. Fleeing your homeland of conflict with nothing but the clothes on your back and enough money to provide food and rent for mere months, you might wonder how you’re going to keep yourself and your loved ones warm.
Thanks in part to the warm generosity of our donors, the children who attend our After School Club now have beautiful homemade quilts they can call their own to keep them warm through the cold winter nights. Most of these children have fled horrible conditions and still bear with them the memories of the wars of their homelands. Having any sense of security, including a blanket, can make a child feel safe and secure.
“Thank you for the beautiful blanket, I love the colors!” — Noor, 10, Iraq
“This blanket will keep me warm at night, thank you!” —Ayoub, 12, Syria
The beautiful quilts were homemade by women all across The United States. These women volunteered their time and energy after hearing of Salaam Cultural Museum’s initiative to keep refugees warm this winter, and graciously pitched in their time and talents and made every quilt unique with hope and love. This ongoing process of making and distributing quilts has been occurring over the past four years, and CRP is grateful to have been part of their latest distribution. Our children absolutely adored the quilts and could not believe they were able to take them home!
