Moeen goes extra mile to support earthquake aftermath

Corporate And General News

supplies they had brought. As well as distributing goods, the group also “Fed thousands, and built tents for families who had nowhere to stay, in the beaming sun.” Moeen’s journey was only possible through the support of his colleagues. Prior to the trip, he spoke with his manager Nayna Patel to ascertain the possibility of him obtaining the necessary leave.

Nayna stated, “It was a really busy time as it was half-term, where I had already approved leave for the team, and we already had staff on days off as we run a seven-day service, 9am-9pm.

"Moeen sent me a text message over the weekend, but didn't assume he could have the days off."

“Having given it some thought, Moeen’s admiration to not only take part in this mission, but also take a risk himself, was just so remarkable. The leave was honoured on this basis.”

Nayna informed the team of this decision, and the response from the rest of the team was integral in maintaining an effective service, working together to make sure the service was able to run efficiently.

“Without the team support, it might not have been possible.”

Moeen returned to work the day after arriving back in the UK. His trip has had a resounding impact on him: “It was a reality check really – I don’t take things for granted any more.”

The recent earthquakes in Turkey and Syria affected many of us across the country, as stories and images of the devastation were reported in the media. Whilst some of us donated and raised awareness, one colleague in our Trust chose to step forward and travel to Turkey to assist on the front line of the disaster.

Moeen Khan works as a governance support unit administrator; his role involves customer service, talking to complainants and logging their issues of concern, dealing with calls from solicitors and third party personnel in relation to access to medical records. Around a week after the earthquake hit, he was speaking with family involved with volunteering for Unite 4 Humanity, an international aid and development UK Muslim Charity working to end poverty, illiteracy and disease. His family were due to catch a flight to Turkey to help, and Moeen wanted to join them.

Moeen stated, “Instead of flying, we were told it was more impactful for us to drive over with supplies. We got a convoy together and began fundraising to bring both money and supplies over to Turkey, travelling by land.”

The decision was taken as it was more beneficial for the group to bring essentials, such as hygiene packs, food and tools. All in, they filled six vans and a seven and a half tonne truck, raising about £60,000 through fundraising with friends and family.

Their journey was difficult: Moeen noted that “During the drive across Germany, we found out there had been two more earthquakes, but we kept going – we were on a mission to get there. It was my first time doing something like this and it took three days to drive there.”

Upon arrival in Turkey, the group began working with the charity IHH, a humanitarian relief organisation, to distribute the money and