American Academy Larnaca helps Greek fire victims

American Academy  Larnaca students collected school supplies sent in backpacks to 40 students in an area devastated by last summer’s huge Greek wildfires.

Supplies were sent to the Ayia Anna High School on the fire-stricken Greek island Evia.

What started as a meeting between sixth-year students at the academy to discuss their return to school in September resulted in this charitable initiative.

The initial proposal to help the fire victims of Evia was put forward by 17-year-old Christos Zonias, who wanted to contribute to the recovery effort.

“I used to live in Greece for a few years due to my father’s job, and we visited the island of Evia for our summer holidays.

“I can still picture the beautiful beaches with crystal clear waters and the endless acres of forest.

“Watching on the news what happened to all that magical scenery and people crying in agony because they lost their homes urged me to do something and help; to at least ease some of that pain”.

Christos persuaded his classmates to chip in.

“We owe it to the people of Evia since they were also next to us fighting during the Turkish invasion.

“There is also a memorial at the village of Spathari for the soldiers who came from Evia to Cyprus to fight and lost their lives”.

The students approached companies and individuals with their idea and collected donations to buy school bags, electrical supplies and stationary.

With the money they collected and their school’s help, they managed to buy books and additional stationery.

The 40 bags were delivered a few months later at the Ayia Anna high school in Evia and received by their peers with joy and appreciation.

The largest forest fire in Greece in 2021 was on the island of Evia in July and August, where more than 50,000 hectares of forest were destroyed.

An estimated 300,000 acres of forest and bushland were incinerated in Greece last summer amid temperatures that hit 47.1°C, the highest on record.

More than a third of the devastated area was in northern Evia.