The members of the «Albanian Community of Chania» have made the house of a Greek family unrecognizable.
The house in lower Koum Kapi was in a bad shape due to its age and the financial weakness of the family. With the initiative of members of the Albanian Community, builders, craftsmen, masons, a great effort to reconstruct the house has been started for 30 days!
As he explained to the Chaniotika News the president of the “Albanian community of Chania” Mr. Afrim Avtai «one of our members Spyros is a neighbour with the children who live in this house that had started to have problems with falling plaster, water everywhere and he suggested to us if we as a community can support them. They needed it because the children living in the house are extremely low-income and we said we need to do something for them.».
For the last month Albanian craftsmen, builders have been coming every afternoon after work and working on the house in order to reconstruct it. Repairs have been made on the roofs of the toilet, on the main body of the house and insulation will be done on the roof of the house as well.
«We will also do work inside the house once we finish outside so the children can have a decent home. Also the Builders» Union of Chania told us that they will do the painting of the house. We as a movement are helping but we need the authorities to see what they will do. Our craftsmen may all be artists in their work but we have to see what the authorities do to support these people", Mr. Avtai stresses.
Spyros, who had the initiative to start the work, says that «we just wanted to help the children because it was a shame to live in a house that floods, where the wind blows in», while Artur points out that «we are all masons, masons and we can do this job very well. In life we all at some point asked for help and some people were close to us. Now that we can we want to help those who cannot. It doesn't matter the nationality of the other person and where they are from. I have been in Greece for 22 years and I feel like a local. My children have got Greek citizenship».
The members of the Albanian Community, as Afrim says, were thrilled with the support of the Greek society to his compatriots who were struck by the deadly earthquake the year before last. «We were surprised by the great help and participation. I am touched by the help and because we are no longer immigrants but after so many years we are locals and part of the society we want to give to the weak. Together we can all help each other,» he said.
«Thank you to the children from the Albanian community, may they be well, may they always be well!
I say it from the bottom of my heart because they help so much!» said one of the residents of the house. The members of the Albanian community working on the reconstruction of the house are Spyros Pantelidis, Artur Korcai, Aris Vangelis, Anton Smali, Egli Salari, Flamur Coca and Astrid Chargou.
