It was thanks to Claudia Catzaras that the SOS Children's Village work in Greece was able to begin. It was on her initiative that the Greek SOS Children's Village Association was founded in 1975. She had first got to know about the SOS Children's Village idea in France and, after meeting Hermann Gmeiner, decided to realise this concept in her home country. Construction of the first SOS Children's Village in Vari, in the Attica province, south of Athens, started in January 1979. The first children were already able to move into their new homes in August 1982. In the early 1990's, the number of SOS Children's Village Facilities was increased for the youths and an SOS Youth Facility was opened near Vari.
Later another SOS Children's Village was built near Thessaloniki and an SOS Social Centre was set up in one of the most densely-populated districts of Athens, where a lot of immigrants live.
The work carried out by the SOS Social Centre concentrates mainly on children, youths and family problems. It mostly revolves around educational psychotherapy for the children and support in all areas of life for the adults. When Athens was struck by an earthquake in 1999, the SOS Social Centre team worked in two aid camps in the city, thereby helping more than 2,000 people.
Since 2009, a third SOS Children's Village is in operation in Alexandrópoulis in the Thrace area, not far from the Turkish boarder. It includes a day care facility and a counselling centre.
At present there are three SOS Children's Villages in Greece, four SOS Youth Facilities and three SOS Social Centres.
Website of SOS Children's Villages Greece
(available in Greek)