By Nicolas Bard

Kirk is a small village of Evros, located in the valley of the Irene River, about 25 kilometers from Alexandroupolis. Once the village was surrounded by dense forests, but after the devastating fires of 2023 the landscape changed the face and with it the lives of the inhabitants changed once and for all, who saw their property, crops and animals become ash within 24 hours. The fires circled the village, many houses suffered serious damage and others were completely demolished. The image of the settlement the next day was not reminiscent of the former picturesque village, and the melancholy watered the souls and eyes of the people. But they didn’t put it down!

The inhabitants of the village showed the power of soul and vigor. They did not give up and all together as a punch they decided to act immediately to help their village rebuild, and their affected fellow villagers to return to their homes. So, selling t -shirts, and through other interesting actions, they raised revenue for good purpose, and managed to rebuild, but also to furnish the house of Mr. Christopher, who had been destroyed by the fire. The “Village of Solidarity” set a good example and became a lighthouse of hope for other places that have suffered similar disasters. Of course, they do not stop their actions here and hope in the coming years to be able to rebuild all 27 houses of their village, which were taken from the fire.

The village’s Cultural Association has managed to raise awareness not only from Greece but also from abroad, with the aim of supporting the firefighters in the area and helping them stay in their place, and not leave there. Mr. Christopher, with tears of emotion and joy, opened his home on his camera where there is Greece and talked about the huge embrace of his fellow villagers, who gave him his home again. There he can now host his grandchild, and for him there is no greater satisfaction in life than that. As he says, if he did not have the help of his fellow villagers he would have done nothing, and his buzzing eyes reflect the love and gratitude he feels.

Kirk is a village that rebuilds hope and emitting a light of optimism in the difficult times we are going through. Our ancient ancestors used to say “power in the union”, which means that power is in unity. And the truth is that when we are united we can achieve great things, because only then are we stronger and resistant to the evil of life.