«After the first week of volunteering, it was clear to me that I wanted to make a longer-term and sustainable commitment to displaced people.»
History
SAO Association was founded on 24 February 2016 by Raquel Herzog after she volunteered in Lesvos in 2015 to help rescue refugees at sea.
Milestones
November 2023
Visit of the Federal Councillor and the State Secretary
A delegation consisting of Federal Councillor Elisabeth Baume-Schneider, State Secretary Schraner Burgener, Swiss Ambassador Estermann and companions visited Lesbos in November 2023 and made their last stop at the Bashira Centre.
Upstairs, the Federal Councillor, the State Secretary, and Raquel Herzog spent two hours with our clients. The women spoke very movingly about their worries and hardships, and the politicians listened attentively.
The Federal Councillor said goodbye to the women and said: "Thank you for your courage in telling your stories."
2023
Swiss Red Cross Award
At the Red Cross Assembly on June 24, 2023 in Neuenburg, the Red Cross Prize for humanitarian services of exceptional quality was awarded for the 10th time and went to SAO.
According to the Swiss Red Cross, the jury of the Red Cross Prize was extremely impressed by the SAO program and the team's extraordinary humanitarian commitment.
The Red Cross Prize is one of the highest awards bestowed by the Swiss Red Cross. The achievements recognized by the Swiss Red Cross should be guided by the principles of humanity, impartiality, neutrality, and voluntary service.
At the award ceremony, Raquel Herzog dedicated the prize to the extremely dedicated staff members and acknowledged the exceptional resilience of the clients.
2019 - 2023
pilot project
Back on Track academic
In 2019, we launched our pilot project with three young women whom we have known since their arrival on Lesbos in 2016. The Kurdish-Syrian sisters Ruha (pictured) and Ronahi Said, as well as Amani Bremou, who is from Aleppo, were able to overcome institutional and linguistic barriers and resume their studies in September 2020. All three of them have now successfully completed their studies.
With the third degree, we concluded the pilot project, focusing fully on the language and skills development of our clients in Greece through our ‘Back on Track vocational’ programme.
Dec 2018
Swiss Federal Delegation
Bashira Centre Visit
In December 2018, we were visited by a Swiss delegation.
The delegation, including the Swiss Ambassador to Athens, Olaf Kjelsen, the Head of Humanitarian Aid and Deputy Director of the SDC, Manuel Bessler, as well as Dieter Dreyer (SDC) and Helène Minacci (SEM), was given a tour of the Bashira Centre by the Bashira directors, Sonia Andreu and Rachel Ellis and showed great interest in our work.
As a result, we received support from the SDC for 2 years and subsequently from the SEM for 18 months.
Unfortunately, this support then ceased due to the cohesion payments, which go directly to Greece.
Oct 2018
Visit of an Amnesty International Delegation
In October 2018, we welcomed a delegation from Amnesty International, including Secretary General Kumi Naidoo, to the Bashira Centre.
The delegation held an emotional, inspiring, and encouraging discussion with our clients, who expressed their concerns, described the difficulties in the Moria camp, and made practical suggestions to improve the situation of displaced women on Lesbos.
After the meeting, the guests presented us with a banner of hope bearing messages of support, love and solidarity in many languages from Amnesty members around the world.
The report published by Amnesty International on the situation of refugee women on Lesbos and the Bashira Centre can be viewed here.
2018
Opening
Amina Centre, Athens
When the women we were caring for at the Bashira Centre received a positive asylum decision, they had to leave the island very quickly. Another uncertain new beginning awaited them on the mainland.
We decided to continue supporting these women and, in 2018, opened the Amina Centre in the heart of Athens, which, in addition to providing psychosocial support, increasingly specialises in integrating its clients.
A language teacher teaches the women Greek and prepares them for the official exams in accordance with the European reference framework.
At the Amina Centre, women receive holistic support, their family environment is involved, and working women can contact the team at any time with questions about their employment.
2017
Opening
Bashira Centre, Lesbos
While distributing aid supplies in the Moria refugee camp, we repeatedly spoke with women. It became clear that the camp was in no way equipped to meet the specific needs of women: appalling sanitary conditions, lack of security, and disrupted sleep were the main problems. The women longed for a safe place accessible only to women, a place where they could shower safely and find someone to listen to their concerns.
We decided to focus our work entirely on refugee women and opened the Bashira Centre on Lesbos. Due to the immense demand, we soon decided to concentrate on the most vulnerable women and offer a professional psychosocial program.
Apr / May 2016
Inventory of Greek Mainland Refugee Camps
In April 2016, SAO initiated and carried out a significant research project.
Over two comprehensive trips, a group of volunteers, including the current CEO of SAO-Hellas, Tereza Lyssiotis, inventoried 46 newly established refugee camps on the Greek mainland following the "EU-Turkey deal".
Local volunteers regularly wrote updates until the camps were closed. The report is still publicly available today.
March - August 2016
"Stone House" Piraeas
Following the closure of the borders on March 18, 2016, due to the "EU-Türkiye deal," the refugees were stuck in Greece.
From March to August 2016, thousands lived in inhumane conditions in the port of Piraeus. A group of volunteers, led by Renata Blazková, who later became a program manager at the Bashira Day Centre, provided round-the-clock care for the approximately 1,300 people living in and around the so-called "Stonehouse." They distributed donated goods, provided basic medical care, organised baby formula and better accommodations for the most vulnerable, and regularly transported people to the hospital in their minibus.
Feb 2016 - Feb 2017
Emergency Relief Warehouse, Lesvos
SAO initially ran the largest and only public warehouse for aid supplies in Greece on Lesbos. We rented the premises in 2016 and received donations of goods from all over the world.
These were sorted, stored, delivered, and handed over to those who picked them up themselves. The donations went to refugees, camps, and other NGOs on Lesbos and the Greek mainland, as well as to needy members of the local population.
In February 2017, SAO handed over the warehouse to the local organisation ATTIKA Human Support.
Jan 2016 - Feb 2017
Stone house
The SAO van was used to deliver aid supplies to refugees and needy locals all over the island.
It also served as a means of transporting aid supplies from the Attika warehouse to Moria and other refugee accommodations.
At night, it served as a mobile storage facility on the beach for emergency blankets, wool blankets, and dry clothes. Countless hypothermic and soaked children were warmed up in it upon their arrival.
Thanks to its striking colour, the SAO van was known all over the island.
Since 2019, any assistance to new arrivals has been prohibited and is subject to criminal prosecution.
In January 2025, humanitarian aid workers convicted in 2019 were acquitted after years of prosecution; however, it remains unclear what consequences aid workers may still face.
Oct 2015 - Mar 2016
Emergency Response, Lesvos
In October 2015, Raquel Herzog flew to Lesbos to volunteer, providing emergency aid to arriving boat refugees on the beaches.
After she founded SAO in February 2016, the association continued to be active on the beaches with several volunteers. At night, a lookout was posted for boats north of the island and along the coast around the airport. At the critical moment of landing, the frightened, wet refugees were supported and provided with first aid, dry clothes, water, and energy bars on the ground.
With the SAO Van, elderly, physically challenged and injured people were transported to the UNHCR buses that took the people to the camp for registration.
Name and logo
Sao is a nymph from Greek mythology, one of the 50 daughters of the sea gods Doris and Nereus. The sea nymph (Nereid) protected and rescued shipwrecked people in dangerous waters. A stylised Sao adorns our logo.