HOW WE GOT HERE
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A bit of background....
The original and primary purpose of this small team is the co-ordination of goods and food from those who wish to donate, to those in need, across the Algarve.
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Algarve Families in Need (formerly Algarve Network for Families in Need) began as an informal group in 2011 in the Albufeira area, in response to the poverty suffered by many families on the Algarve - those who really struggled to buy the essentials for everyday life. Working through a Facebook page, this work continued for around eight years, passing goods from those who wanted to give..... to those in need.
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At the announcement of the first Covid-19 lockdown in Portugal (March 2020), group member Bernadette was approached by a few ladies, local to her home who understandably, seemed traumatised at the realisation that they would not be returning to work following the winter lay off. These families, mostly seasonal workers, clearly had no reserves to see them through a period of lockdown and there was little or no support available to them. Using the FB page, Bernadette started with basic posts outlining the situation of parents in the community who were not able to feed their families. Almost immediately, we were inundated with responses from those who wished to donate and those in dire need and Bernadette found herself talking on the phone for up to five hours a day. In her own words.... "We were surprised and motivated by the offers of help that were pouring in but soon realised that we would need help! Another FB post enabled us to recruit volunteers in various areas of the Algarve who were happy to work when they could, collecting and delivering goods and food.”
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This 16-month effort resulted in AFIN managing to provide food for up to1,500 people per week ranging from a one-off emergency supply to continuous weekly supplies throughout the entire project. A German businessman who heard about AFIN through a waitress in a local restaurant, kindly donated the massive amount of €8,000 which was a fantastic start to the appeal. Further donations were received from the U.S, Sweden and The Netherlands along with an amazing response from the community here on the Algarve. Along with food donated at the ten hubs created across the region, this helped enormously with the feeding of hundreds of Algarve families in need each week. We still find it hard to believe that people turned out week after week to donate food and other essentials and of course, we are truly grateful to those volunteers who gave so graciously of their time and resources to support some of the most vulnerable in our community.
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Although initially, most of the donations involved goods and food, the financial donations created the need for a bank account and registration as an association so as part of the Associação Todos Team, the Algarve Network for Families in Need became a registered charity. In July 2021, as the country began to open up and jobs became available, the weekly distribution of food was phased out and we began to look at other ways in which to help families through the period of recovery, focusing primarily on supporting people back into work and operating various projects to support children in their education.
As our joint registration with Associação Todos Team had been a temporary measure, the time soon came for us to operate under our own registration as a single charity. This prompted the process of re-registration and we were registered as Associação Algarve Families in Need AFIN - less formally known as Algarve Families in Need.
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On 31 May Algarve Families in Need was officially formed at an Annual General Meeting held in Carvoeiro and the roles of President, Vice President , Treasurer and Secretary (temporary) were confirmed. Click here to view the charity registration certificate. ​
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How we operate....
Our primary work continues to be the redistribution of goods from those who wish to donate to those in most need. We take great care to ensure that requests are genuine and donations are fairly distributed. In fact, co-ordination is the primary challenge and because trust is paramount, we are committed to the effective management of the generous donations offered and routinely protect the identity of both our donors and our families.
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Background checks are routinely undertaken to ensure that donations are passed to those who are most in need. We always stipulate that it's on the acquisition of essentials that we concentrate our efforts but in those instances where special or in-demand items are offered, we take enormous care to ensure that they are given to recipients we know will benefit the most from these kind gifts.