A little more than 2,000 years ago a Middle Eastern family
fled the violence that filled their hometown and threatened
to claim the life of their infant son.
The story of the Holy Family’s flight into Egypt resonates
with many Christians today as thousands of refugees from Iraq
and Syria make a dangerous, often fatal, journey from their
homeland to arrive on the shores of Greece and other
countries. With that story in mind, Catholic Herald
staff selected Carry the
Future (CTF), a new grassroots organization that assists
refugee parents by collecting and distributing baby carriers,
as the winner of the staff’s annual “Nominate a Charity”
contest.
As part of the annual contest, readers and staff send in
their nominations for a charity the Catholic Herald
staff can support through publicity and other means.
CTF is “just a group of people who want to help other people,
especially when it comes to children. A lot of us are moms
that can’t imagine traveling with children in such
conditions,” said Brenda Figueroa-Lopez, a Washington
resident and the Virginia coordinator for Carry the Future.
CTF was founded in September 2015 by Cristal Logothetis, a
California resident who was moved to action after seeing the
picture of Aylan Kurdi, a Syrian child, lying facedown on a
Greek beach after drowning. Kurdi’s situation was not unique.
According to UNICEF, approximately half of the 4 million
Syrian refugees are children.
After Logothetis realized that even the families who made it
to Greece alive still had to walk hundreds of miles to reach
their ultimate destinations, she decided to take action. A
mother herself and avid babywearer, Logothetis asked her
friends to donate their used baby carriers in order to help
refugees safely transport their children.
The effort took off like wildfire. Within two weeks,
Logothetis’ effort had made the national news and her online
fundraiser had reached 700 percent of her funding goal. In
the D.C. metropolitan area, more than two dozen volunteers
have collected more than 200 baby carriers.
Figueroa-Lopez thinks that CTF appeals to many people because
it is such a useful, everyday item for many people.
“I got really attached to Carry the Future because I recently
became a mom,” said Figueroa-Lopez. “I have an 8-month-old at
home and seeing the images of babies and kids suffering
really touched my heart. I knew there was something I could
do.”
Stachyra Lopez, a volunteer with Carry the Future, can be
reached at [email protected].
