Walk into the LHI Community Center in Greece, and you may find a long queue of people waiting in front of a young man behind a sewing machine. He chats with a few onlookers without stopping his work. The onlookers wait to meet and witness the craftsmanship of “G,” or Gibrilla, a resident at the refugee camp and volunteer at our Center. G is a refugee from Sierra Leone and a trained tailor. His deft skill, honed in a friend’s fashion designing shop in Freetown, Sierra Leone, is an invaluable resource to the camp residents.
Talking about how he began mending and altering clothing for the community, he says, “Different people bring different work to do… so I tried to solve their problem.” It’s important to him to approach every piece with the unique needs for each person in mind. The care he puts into his work is visible, and he has developed a reputation as a tailor around the Center. But for G, the reason he sews goes beyond utility.
“The more difficult the job, the more I get [to] remember my work back there… in Freetown. Every day you see new people… you learn from them.” The sewing machine, for G, isn’t just a sewing machine, but a tool of healing. “I think Lifting Hands… they have been trying to empower each and every one,” he says, “trying to support not only me, everyone.” This isn’t always easy. “People from camp have many things in their… mind, they have traumas. So these activities… keep them really calm.” Gibrilla, even suffering irreconcilable loss of loved ones, says he feels that he is at home.
G helps others to find that feeling, offering repair and renewal in every piece he makes. G is beginning a journey of stitching his community back together.