When a friend asked me to travel with him on a “Convoy to Calais” to take supplies to refugees I was unsure, to say the least.
Many people think about doing more for charity, or to help those less fortunate than themselves, but how far would we go? It meant almost a week away, days of work missed and time away from my children. Did I want to help that much?
A quick check with my family left me in no doubt. The group Ireland Calais Refugee Solidarity was formed by Tracey Ryan, a young expectant mother from Cork, who wanted to help. What started as a small appeal grew to a massive operation in just a few weeks.
Thursday Four articulated lorries, six vans and 53 people are in Rosslare for the 7.30pm ferry to Cherbourg. The volunteers come from all walks of life: teachers, nurses, drivers, executives and architects.
Friday At 4.30pm we dock in Cherbourg and, after some redistribution of materials between the vans, we drive the five hours to Calais. Micheál Keane from Bearna Dearg in Galway is a woodwork teacher in St Jarlath's College in Tuam. He had previously volunteered in South Africa and Mozambique, building schools and health centres, and is to be a leader on the building team.
As we near Calais, our complaints of stiffness and the length of the journey are abruptly forgotten as we come dangerously close to a group of 10 darkly-dressed refugees walking on the hard shoulder of the motorway.
A larger group is gathered in a motorway underpass for their nightly trip to the tunnel to try to break the blockade.
Saturday Our first task is to unload all of our supplies and to organise the warehouse. Everything needs to be sorted, graded, boxed, labelled and stacked before nightfall. Kathy O'Hare, a youth and community worker from Cork, is an experienced volunteer and she is the co-ordinator.
Our next task is to visit a local builders suppliers to pick up more timber. Our budget of €1,500 is overshot by €200, but a friendly manager reduces the total when he hears why we are there.
Our first experience of the camp is not as bad of many of us had feared. People seem healthy, friendly and in good spirits. There is no tension and the area feels safe.
I spend some time escorting a medical team of four women, but it doesn’t feel like there is a need. Dwellings range from small two-man tents and homemade shacks, to large eight-man tents with porches you can stand in.
There is also a variety of structures constructed from pallets, trees or waste wood with membrane or tarpaulin stretched over them. There are a few shops and a couple of restaurants in homemade buildings and there is even a Christian church.
Someone jokes that it looks like the Electric Picnic site after the festival is over. But these people are here long term. What will it be like during the winter? There is already a pond of stagnant water at both water distribution points as there is no drainage. We add that to our list of future missions. Activity in the camp is lively with NGO’s and volunteer groups going about their business.
Our main mission for the day is to find and clear a site so that the team can construct the buildings for the women’s and children’s centre that we have agreed with the local NGO to provide. The building will be a 10-metre by 6-metre mix between a prefab and a marquee.
It was designed and planned by a team from UL's school of architecture. They are assisted by refugees from Afghanistan, including a third-year architecture student who will be trained in how to build the structures in future.
Sunday The team divides again: building, warehouse or medical. Phelim Convery, who is in his 60s, is a retired contractor from Newry. On the same day he found some old famine beds on his land, he heard Ryan talking to Marian Finnucane on RTÉ radio. With the help of Newry Lions Club, he collected six articulated trucks of supplies which have all been sorted, graded, boxed and labelled.
Our time at the camp is over and we return to the ferry, though some will stay until Wednesday.
Monday We dock in Dublin and mobile signal is returned. We are flooded with messages and photos from those still in Calais, proudly standing beside the newly constructed shelters.
We are delighted, but also a little disappointed that we did not have more time to see them finished. These volunteers have made a lasting contribution to the lives of the unfortunate 4,500 who inhabit the “jungle”.
What these people need is better facilities, what they want is a lift to Dover.
At least we could help with one.