Originally from Zimbabwe, Cecilia Sakatira is the co- Owner and founder of Creative Hands. Her passion and expertise is to aid the spiritual, emotional and physical development of women and families. Since 1998, Cecilia has worked with at-risk women and children on four continents in multiple countries: in Brazil, Tunisia, Morocco, Uzbekistan, South Africa, Zimbabwe and Greece. She speaks six languages and holds a Master of Arts in Christian Counseling (Vision International University, 2013), as well as several specialized training certificates, including International Human Trafficking (University of San Angelo, 2013), Principles and Practices in Christian Microfinance and Microenterprise Development (Chalmers Center for Economic Development, 2009), Social Education with Children at Risk (Happy Child International, 2003), and Pattern Making and Design (Harare Polytechnic, 2001).

Renae is a musician by training and passion, holding undergraduate and Master’s degree in music, as well as a Doctor of Arts in Choral Conducting with a secondary study in Higher Education. She initially came to Athens in February of 2019 to observe and hoped to aid the desperate situation of the growing refugee population in the country. Renae could see the exciting potential of the project in the lives of the displaced women who came to Greece.  She has had the previlege to use music to teach university students about the connection between the arts and culture, and ultimately, to what we believe about life. Her desire is to use creativity and beauty to connect people to one another and the world around them, as well as to better understand themselves, excites her to join the Creative Hands team.

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Born in Ethiopia, Abeba came to Greece many years ago, met and married a man from Sudan and together they have three children. Her journey has not been an easy one but by the grace of God we have been able to walk alongside her providing a safe place for her and her family. When we met her she had just been deported back to Greece after having lived in Sweden with her family for six years. She had no skills and over the last 11 months we have witnessed her learn both sewing and weaving, through determination and a desire to provide for her family. Today she is the one who does all our sewing and is a happy mother. Her children are in a local school and we at Creative Hands feel honoured to have walked with her and create a place where she feels loved, secure and has hope for a better future for her and her children.

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​Hebo was born in Somalia but grew up in Djibouti. She was referred to us by another NGO in town because she needed a place to stay. We welcomed her although were uncertain iff we were well equipped to help her because of what she had gone through and was dealing with. But, we took a step of faith and welcomed her into one of our apartments. She needed time to heal and learn that we love her and we desire the best for her. I have watched her begin to bloom from walking with her head down to where she brightens the room when she walks in. She is a joy to teach and work with. She learned weaving and she is very confident that she will grow to be the best in weaving. We love Hebo because she has taught us grace and patience and what it means to trust others, even when you cannot see any change on the outside. At the moment she is mastering the art of weaving but we are confident that she will learn sewing also.

Aphrodite is one of the brave local women who responded to our advert in 2021 whereby we invited Greek women to come and learn weaving alongside us and learn more about Creative Hands and what it is we do. She came for two weeks and she is still with us! We trained her and she decided she liked what we were doing and wanted to help us through volunteering. We are blessed to have her with us ever since! She has been a great help in terms of making sure things are running well. She has had to learn quite a bit in relating with women from other nations and we love how to she has responded with grace and love.

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We love Azam, her smile and gentleness melts your heart even when she has made mistakes. She was referred to us almost two years ago and needed help. She is a widow left with two small children, a son and daughter. Her story has been one of pain, disappointment and initially we had no idea how she would cope. But one thing we are determined to do at Creative Hands is create a place and space where women are encouraged each day to strive for the better, a place where they know that they can make mistakes and we still love them, a place where they can dream of a better future for them and their children. She has a strong desire to learn and does weaving with the other women. She is originally from Iran.

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Elisabeth Antonellou is our IT Specialist. She manages our website, newsletters and campaigns. She was born and raised in the Bahamas from Greek parents who eventually moved back to Greece, where Elisabeth finished Greek school and obtained a Bachelor of Science in Computer Information Systems. She has worked  in the fields  of computing and education for the past 15 years and was very excited to be a part of the Creative Hands team, supporting us in any way she can.