My Nonprofit Reviews

In November 2014, I volunteered to help Karam setup a computer lab in Al-Salam school in Reyhanlı, Turkey near the border with Syria. The lab had 20 desktop computers and 2 stronger computers which were capable enough to handle video editing and graphic design software. The Lab had one printer and an internet connection.

Upon having the PCs ready, another volunteer team took over the lab with 20-30 Syrian refugee students. They were teaching the students Scratch, a visual programming language from MIT (https://scratch.mit.edu). I wouldn't forget the hunger for knowledge in the eyes of those young men. Eventually, they created stories and interactive objects that move on the screen, using variables, conditions and loops. etc. in Scratch.

On another day, another team took over with other groups of students, they were young women, mostly in the age of high school, they were taught interactively how to search for scholarships and how to teach themselves English and other foreign languages using Duolingo and other related programs.

Then I had to leave before the conclusion of the week-long workshops. It was a remarkable experience for me. I left Reyhanlı with high hope that we helped as many as we can of those Syrian students to open their eyes and be reminded that there are always hope for a better tomorrow. And most importantly, I hoped that we had helped to set many of them on tracks for better careers in the future.

I'd keep supporting Karam and volunteering in their workshops as long as they live up to the high quality of their programs.

Milad Kawas Cale
Just another Syrian refugee