<\/p>\n
by <\/em><\/strong>Julia Turner, SolidarityNow intern – trainee<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cWe wanted to get away from\u2026 <\/em>from <\/em>being so alone<\/em>; and<\/em> you know keep our minds busy<\/em>.\u201d Suhail is explaining how the Elef Club was set up. Six months ago, Suhail and a couple of friends approached Solidarity Now CFS Facilitators* Theo and Eleni, asking to set up a group for the teenagers of the camp to provide entertainment and to make friends with one another. The club started with a piece of paper, on which everyone wrote down what they wanted to do or what they could teach the group. That way they built activities to do everyday: \u201cwe made a schedule everyday\u2026 football, volleyball, board games\u2026<\/em>\u201d Now the group meets daily and is a central part of its fifteen members\u2019 lives.<\/p>\n The interview is as chaotic and fun as you would expect to have with a group of teenagers: dominated by excited laughing and teasing, infinite distractions as phones go off and tangential conversations take hold, and plenty of talk about girls. However, what strikes me is how earnest the boys are and how open they are about their feelings and fears. When I ask the group about their favourite activities, they initially call out specific games: \u201cwhen we write the homework and play volleyball<\/em>\u201d, says Danial; \u201cI like Jungle Speed and Dobble<\/em>\u201d says Zobair; \u201cI like when the teacher helps me with the, you know, girly things\u2026<\/em>\u201d says Ramin. But when Sadeq brings up the social aspect of the club, saying \u201cI like to think that we gather around and play together<\/em>\u201d, everyone agrees. \u201cI like that we are together and can discuss anything\u201d, says Zobair; \u201cAnd if we have a problem we can share it with anyone\u201d, says Suhail. Theo recalls that they agreed at the beginning that they would be the solutions to their own problems. \u201cI remember that sentence<\/em>\u201d, mulls Suhail \u201cWe will be the solutions<\/em>\u201d.<\/p>\n So how would the boys describe the club themselves? What are the words or feelings that the name \u2018Elef Club\u2019 conjures up for them? \u201cWhen I hear Elef Club, I get happy<\/em>\u201d; \u201cI imagine I am playing<\/em>\u201d; \u201cBeing lucky<\/em>\u201d; \u201cProblem solver<\/em>!\u201d. And what about the members who make up the club themselves, what do they want to do in their careers? Sharoq wants to \u201cgo to Madrid to play football with Ronaldo<\/em>\u201d and he\u2019s not the only on who wants to be a \u201cfootballist\u201d. Others are more artistic \u2013 an astronomer and a singer are among the group; or more technical \u201cI want to learn medical in Germany<\/em>\u201d; \u201cI want to be a mechanic<\/em>\u201d; \u201cProfessor in MIT\u2026in computers<\/em>\u201d. They become more adventurous when we discuss what they want to do with their lives outside their careers: \u201cI want to create a submarine and do some research in the sea<\/em>\u201d; \u201cI want to create a big airplane<\/em>\u201d; \u201cI want to go around the world\u2026 in 80 days!<\/em>\u201d; \u201cI want to help the poor people\u2026 to make Earth better<\/em>\u201d, says Zobair; \u201cI want to love someone<\/em>\u201d, says Younnes.<\/p>\n Ultimately, the club offers so much more than fun activities for its members to do everyday. It bolsters their confidence by providing support through Eleni and Theo, and through the strong bonds that they have built together. \u201cYou know, <\/em>in <\/em>this group, we have some really good friends\u2026 and we\u2019re not just school friends or something. We live together. It\u2019s something so different. It\u2019s like, they\u2019re my brothers.<\/em>\u201d. The importance of these bonds is particularly clear when the boys describe their first day of school, which they all agree was a huge highlight of their time here: \u201cI went out of the car, I saw the girls, I ran back!… All of us were going back, shouting \u2018Go back!\u2019 and then Danial said, \u2018Let\u2019s go guys\u2019 and we went in front and we had to enter<\/em>.\u201d With many of the group on family reunification programmes that may see them move to other European countries, the future of the club is not certain. Nonetheless, it\u2019s enduring importance is secured through the friendships it has helped to build: \u201cI don\u2019t want to say goodbye to these friends<\/em>\u201d, says Danial. Ramin nods, \u201cI don\u2019t want to say goodbye to my friends<\/em>\u201d.<\/p>\n