DECEMBER 2025 - MONTHLY REPORT

At Wave in December 2025, we served 4,047 hot meals, welcomed 98 new arrivals, charged 111 phones and power banks, ran 50 showers, washed 57 laundry loads, and distributed 140 hygiene packages, and 285 clothing items. 

The total population we supported this month was 2,608.

 

December Updates

Around the end of the year, we have been incredibly busy at Wave, with our Community space always full of people, and with so many new faces! To give you a clearer idea, consider that our average number of visitors during 2025 has been around 70 people per-day, while during the last two weeks of December, the number doubled to reach around 140-150 visitors per day. We’ve served a record number of over 4,000 meals this month (+58% compared to November)! The trend is reflected in an increase of 52% of the number of people coming to our door- around 2 ,600 people.

We have been trying to understand the reasons behind such a sudden change. Most of the newcomers are from Sudan and they are residents of the Reception and Integration Centre (RIC) camp of Diavata (close to Thessaloniki) – and some from the RIC in Policastro. After contacting the authorities of the camp in Diavata, we have been told that the entire registration and relocation system of the region is not currently working properly. Residents of the RIC normally stay for around 2-5 days after being registered and entering the asylum process system, before being relocated. But during the last month, for reasons beyond the control of the camp administration, it has been temporarily impossible to relocate or transfer people. Residents have been forced to stay longer in the RIC, which means that the Diavata camp has been transformed informally into a longer term residential facility. We are not sure about what services are provided in the camp at the moment, but judging from the high requests of non-food-items and hygiene products, we suspect the provision is not adequate to meet residents’ needs.

New challenges and distribution
Wave’s policy and goal have always been to offer solidarity in a fair and sustainable way, welcoming everyone that comes to our door. The rising number of visitors has forced our team to take the difficult decision to change the way we distribute food, in order to limit the number of people inside the space, for safety reasons. Since the last 2 weeks of December, we switched to distributing takeaway food only: the decision was taken, in order to continuously offer access to a fresh and nutritious meal and to keep the community area open for people to socialise, but to take into account the safety of the environment, with a maximum number of people allowed into the space. Pausing the hot food distribution inside Wave has not been an easy decision to take and we are working towards a way to start again in the near future. For the time being, we are offering hot soup every day, so that people can warm up from the harsh weather outside. The rest of our services have remained the same.

Happy New Year!
Around this time of year, manny of us reflect on what the year before has brought us, all the memories and the changes that this past year alone has enfolded in our lives. We want to thank everyone that contributed to make this project possible, all of our wonderful volunteers, dedicating their time and energy day after day, and our generous donors, who relentlessly supported us with funds and donations, but also with ideas and suggestions. And finally, a great thank you to all our community members who contribute every day to create a welcoming social space for everyone! Happy New Year everyone!

Finally, we want to thank everyone who donated to our Winter Fundraiser! Thanks to your generous donations, we raised 3,000 EUR, that will help us to keep people warm this winter!