Join the Chamonix Welcome Collective, below Mont Blanc.

Our mission:

To socially integrate refugees and 'un-accompanied minors' through sports & cultural activities.

We currently work with MECS centers, homes for children who've fled to France without their family.

CWC is a non-profit association registered in France.
Background art by Moira Neil Sawyer

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Chamonix Welcome Collective

We serve refugees and unaccompanied migrant youth in the Chamonix Valley.

In 2022 alone, UNICEF declared that 43.3 million youth had been forcably displaced. Chamonix Welcome Collective supports 35 unaccompanied minors who were displaced and housed in a government center in the Plateau d'Assy, the closest MECS center to Chamonix, as well as the young adults who have recently aged out.

Leadership & Mountain Access

Let's give MECS access to the mountains of Chamonix! What better way to build community, autonomy, and relationships at the base of Mont Blanc?

Donate equipment, clothing or accessories for biking, running, and climbing.

New in 2024:

Stephane Luxe, certified sports coach, volunteers weekly, teaching MNA youth how to navigate a fitness center, and life in general
When teens age out from the MECS childrens' home, we support their introduction into the sports and fitness community
Ascencions Festival

Read the article about unaccompanied migrant and refugee minors >

In French, and first page in English (translation in progress)

Apprenticeship

Youth from the center need jobs not just to work, but to stay in their new home. Contact us if you are a business in the area looking for apprentices.

Host Families

Host families provide a unique connection for youth. Once a week, invite a unique individual to share in formative social atmospheres where they can flourish and feel cared for.

MECS Center Furnishing

The center currently is in a state of disrepair, with broken windows and sparse furnishings. The center is undergoing renovations but still needs workout equipment, appliances, computers, books, and exterior equipment like garden tools, slacklines, hammocks, etc.

Basic Needs

Youth in the center arrive with nothing, and some take months to be registered by the government and receive services. MECS depends on associations for materials like sports equipment, phones and computers for the youth to work, study and play.