While poverty remains an alarming problem and we seem helpless to stop it, there is so much we can do to eliminate the sorrow, the despair and the fear from the less fortunate, especially the children.

This year, with the valuable help of the Danaos family we donated clothes and groceries to “Kivotos tou Kosmou” and “Perivolaki”. Kivotos is a NGO focusing mainly on the protection of children who have lived under circumstances of neglect and abandonment, without access to medical care. Kivotos was founded by Father Antonios in 1998 when he was only 26 years old and he had just entered priesthood. His main belief was that if he tried he could make a difference to improve the conditions in which those children lived and he was not proven wrong. It didn’t take long for him to be characterized by many as “the saint” of the poor, the displaced, the forgotten, the refugees; their defender and their voice.

Perivolaki, on the other hand, is an accommodation center for vulnerable population groups, and more specifically unaccompanied minors, implemented by Médecins du Monde. The center under the title "Reception Center for 100 Unaccompanied Minors" is located in Peania and it is having capacity for 100 children. The building is surrounded by a wonderful landscape and meeting the highest quality standards. The program is supported by the European Commission while the Administrative authority is the Greek office of IOM.

There are hundreds of non-profit organizations that you can choose to donate and even small donations can improve an individual's quality of life. At the end, the emotional, social and psychological benefits of giving are so rewarding that you end up getting back a lot more than you give!