Hundreds of teddy bears have been collected around the island to donate to Syrian refugee children.
An appeal was organised by Zoe Thompson via the ‘Manx Support Refugees’ group in response to a UK-wide appeal by charity MerseyAid.
Bears have been received from schools, nurseries and people around the island and Zoe has been overwhelmed by the response.
She said: ‘The generosity of the Manx public is fantastic.’
Over the last few days volunteers have been helping to pack the teddies, ready to send them to Liverpool.
Once in Liverpool, they will be added to two containers which MerseyAid are sending to Lebanon next week.
Each teddy has been packed with an individual handwritten note for the child receiving it, which introduces the bear and gives a little bit of information about the Isle of Man.
Zoe said: ‘MerseyAid are looking to send 5,000 bears. The children have nothing in the camps. There are around 1.8 million refugees in Lebanon and it is about the size of Cornwall. We are hoping to establish a link with MerseyAid so we can send more things.’
Edward Bryan Removals have been helping with the storage and transport of the teddies.
Zoe said that she and the ‘Manx Support Refugees’ group are planning more appeals but need more help with storage of items and volunteers to pack them.
Their next initiative will be a food bank in December.
Zoe has also been involved in visiting Calais and Dunkirk where she met other volunteers.
She has recently been sending pallets of items such as clothing and toiletries to the Yazidi tribe women and children.
Zoe said: ‘The Yazidi’s have suffered genocide at the hands of Isis. Children as young as nine are considered a woman and can be sold as sex slaves.’
If you can help with storage, volunteering or anything else contact Zoe on 203203 or via the ‘Manx Support Refugees’ Facebook page.
MerseyAid is a charity which has more than 2,000 volunteers and provides support to refugees crossing Europe displaced from their homes due to conflict and/or persecution. It also helps people in Merseyside who have arrived, often with nothing, to integrate into the community.