200,000 refugees supported thanks to Airbnb.org Hosts and donors

[Airbnb]

On World Refugee Day and every day,  Airbnb.org stands in solidarity with people who have been displaced from their homes due to conflict and persecution. Thanks in large part to the generosity of the Airbnb.org Host community and donors, Airbnb.org has connected nearly 200,000 refugees and asylum seekers to emergency stays — including over 135,000 people from Ukraine and 34,000 people from Afghanistan. 

Airbnb.org is proud to be part of ongoing refugee relief efforts worldwide and grateful to the more than 91,000 Hosts across 189 countries who have signed up to house guests. The work is far from over, and today Airbnb.org is announcing new commitments to deepen its support for refugees and asylum seekers.

You can read about these new commitments, and how Hosts can get involved, in the Newsroom.

[Rachel1200]

A year ago yesterday an extended family of Ukrainian refugees arrived at our house; mother and father and 10 year old son, and her sister and two boys aged 10 and 11. It was a heat wave, and we had considered putting the Aga out, but we soon realised that was an impossibility, as Natalia and Ira cooked constantly, for themselves and for us.  Breakfast for the boys before school was pancakes, eggs, and maybe hot dog sausages or ham.  As soon as I had taken them to school, the sisters started cooking lunch and preparing evening meal for eight.  This could be special Ukrainian dumplings from scratch, which would be boiled and served with fried onions, or pork and rice stuffed peppers or pork with potato.  We loved having them so much, I just surrendered my kitchen totally and got used to being served lovely food.

The boys quickly settled into their primary school, and enjoyed not having to go to school online anymore, which they had done due to sirens going off all the time and no school basement.  Stepan got a job in Buxton and we lent him a spare car, a vintage oddity which brought him lots of chat and friendship from men admiring it, and Natalia and Ira got jobs at our pub in the countryside.  I took them to sign on for English lessons, family credit, the doctor, the food bank, and they met other Ukrainians.  Time passed, and Ira missed her husband too much as he wasn’t allowed to leave Ukraine, so they went home, but Natalia and Stepan found a house to rent and moved in in September.  They came back for Christmas here, and we went to their Christmas meal on January 6th, so stuffed with the traditional 12 dishes we could hardly walk.

We’re all still close, and on Monday they were overjoyed for us that our next Ukrainian refugees, a mother and daughter from Odessa finally got their visas after waiting 6 months! The pub is waiting for Iryna with Natalia’s old job, desperately short staffed and looking forward to having another wonderful, hard working Ukrainian, and Iryna is so happy to be able to walk straight into work.

[Jenny]

Hi @Rachel1200 

Thank you so much for sharing your story with us.

Despite the circumstances in which you met the family, it's clear that the experience has connected you all deeply, and it's great to hear that you're all still close!

Wishing you lots of best wishes for the future, and I hope that you're able to share the same experiences with your next refugees.  Feel free to let us know how everything's going.

Take care

Jenny

[Jue0]

@Rachel1200 This is Beautiful. True love in action. A testimony of what airbnb.org and airbnb love continues to inspire. Thank you for your kindness of heart and generosity. Giving of your space, time, resources to ensure that the Refugees got a home and were able to settle. May these good deeds continue to enrich your spirits and soul and may you receive more in abundance. I salute you Rachel.

[Marielle135]

Dear @Rachel1200 

Thank you for this wonderful story you shared with us. Being a member of the .org program gives even more sense to being a host. Sharing is caring as we say! Being in the middle of nowhere makes the welcoming more complicated for refugees who, of course need nearby friends, families, volunteers… i imagine it is very important to find some normality when your life falls apart…

being myself the daughter of a refugee, i know how hard it is to have some parts of your history missing, and not knowing where you come from…

i don’t know if you realise how important what you have done is… feeling welcomed, having kids and parents smiling again and so on… be sure of one thing the “little” you have done will follow these people through generations.

it is thanks to people like you that my mum’s family has become “more french than french”. I know of people i have never met but who helped my grand parents back then, back in 1950’s!

if being a member of .org doesn’t make you richer money wise, for sure it is an experience more valuable than anything money could buy!

personally I am proud of being part of the movement, people should be part of it, to help others and help themselves!!! Bravo Rachel! 

[Jenny]

Hi @Marielle135 

Sharing is caring - this is such a powerful message!

Thank you for sharing your thoughts with us.

Jenny

[Jue0]

@Marielle135 Well said Marielle! Thank you for sharing that part of your family’s history and what kind hearted people are able to achieve. Really moving and touching. Bless your souls. This is indeed love in action. Gros Bisous. Jue