News & events

Celebrating 25 years of Restore

On 3rd July 2024, some of the founders of Restore, together with staff and former staff, management committee members, volunteers, service users and friends all gathered at St Martin in the Bullring Church.

Though we host a celebration event to mark all our achievements each year – this year was different. We celebrated 25 years of Restore’s work in bridging the gap between our local community and refugees and asylum seekers.

Our theme for the night was “Restore: Our Story” so the event had a series of speeches from former and current Restore service users, staff, volunteers and founders.

We heard about the origins of Restore in 1999 from Simon Thorburn, the first Chair of Restore.  There was a desire to support newly arrive Kosovan refugees and asylum seekers arriving through the dispersal policy.  From the outset befriending was central to Restore’s work.  Shari Brown, former Restore Manager, shared her reflections on how Restore works for change, how different the refugee support landscape was two decades ago and how Restore supported other new organisations. Mauricio Silva, former Chair of the Restore management committee, explained the impact of Restore’s work while Charles Worth, a former volunteer befriender, shared how befriending impacts volunteers, as well as refugees and asylum seekers. We also heard from a current befriending pair, who shared their stories and how they helped cultivate each other’s shared interests.

The children who attended took on the very important task of creating some Restore-themed artwork for our photo-taking session later on in the evening. They added to a chain with messages of love and welcome, and uniquely designed each letter of ‘Restore 25’.

Throughout the evening, we chanted “Say it loud, say it clear, refugees are welcome here” to remind ourselves that we are all united by one goal – to support and welcome people seeking sanctuary to Birmingham.

As the evening drew to a close, we enjoyed our signature refreshments – samosas, cookies and tea! We were so happy to see over 130 volunteers, befrienders and befriendees in attendance. We are grateful to all those who celebrated 25 years of Restore with us!

It was a great opportunity to say Thank You:

Thank you to the founders of Restore who had the original vision to create Restore and to those who were involved in the early years.

Thank you to the Chairs, Treasurers and members of the Restore Management Committee.

Thank you to all the refugee support organisations who work with refugees and asylum seekers.

Thank you to all Restore staff past and present.

Thank you to all befrienders, past and present, and all those who have been befriended.

Thank you to all who have been on a Restore activity.

Thank you to all asylum seekers and refugees for trusting us and enriching our lives.

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