What am I doing?

On the 8th of May I will be running a daunting 26 miles, retracing the original marathon route first ran by Pheidippides, the ancient Greek messenger who is said to have collapsed dead on its completion. 

Hoping to avoid that same fate, I have been training diligently, doing semi-occasional runs and sticking to a highly regimented diet of beer, fine tobacco, and feta cheese. All this, and not much more, I do in preparation for the largely uphill marathon, said to be among the hardest official routes in the world. 

Why am I subjecting myself to this?

Over the past year I have been lucky enough to become closely aquatinted with Chamomile housing project, which provides holistic and supportive accommodation for previously homeless displaced people with mental health challenges, here in Athens, Greece. 

Chamomile supports one of the most vulnerable demographics in Greece. Asylum seekers here face many difficulties; from poor material conditions to seemingly insurmountable bureaucratic hurdles. For those with mental health issues, however, these challenges are further compounded by social stigma and recurring trauma. I have worked in two different camps over the last two years, and have witnessed the consequences of a one size fits all accommodation approach, that sees people clustered into poorly serviced and overcrowded camps on the edges of nowhere. 

Chamomile Housing Project is not like this. It puts the individual at the centre, and aims to foster long term-autonomy. Participants are housed in apartments throughout Athens, in neighbourhoods they themselves have chosen. Through weekly individual sessions, Chamomile provides residents the tools and support they need to navigate life in Greece independently, while psychologists from a parter organization provide regular one-to-one counselling. This is a truly refreshing and all to rare approach in this context, seeking to a lay a foundation for personal autonomy and psychological well-being, from which the participants will continue to benefit long after they have left the programme.

Chamomile is a desperately needed antidote to the crudeness of the mainstream approach. So that it can continue its fantastic work, it must be able to pay the utilities and rent of the apartments that form the basis of the programme. This is why I am running the marathon! Please consider donating whatever you can, by clicking 'Give Now', and sponsoring my suffering on an epic scale.

I will be running on May 8th with friends of Chamomile, along with some others running for Mazi housing project, another grass roots accommodation programme based in Athens. As an added encouragement to donate,  the event will be live streamed, so you can tune in and watch us suffer in real time. 

Also for more information about Chamomile you can click through to  the main fundraising page, labeled Chamomiles and seen just underneath the 'Give now' option on this page. 

Thank you for your support! 

Felix