Page 2
16/03/2022
Twenty-
The refugees in our village are relatively secure, it is the kindness of the villagers donating food and other essentials. With ours we have spent a small amount of the donations on clothes, mainly footwear to combat the snowy conditions which they weren’ prepared for. Those in our friend’ apartment have run out of money and the mother is trying to find work though this is unlikely in our area which is a poor area anyway however she is trying but we are contributing to the food for the mother and three children. Our area is mainly one of subsistence farming/smallholders and tourism, there really is little money to spare even a school teacher with 20 years experience takes home only £700 a month.
Other friends of ours over the hill into the next valley have a guesthouse with four self contained apartments, it is a thriving business all the year round and they selflessly have thrown open everything for the refugees, cancelling bookings and reducing their advertising. We shall help them with food and towards the cost of the overheads.
The biggest spending from the donation fund is to the hotel giving free accommodation and food for up to 60 refugees who are coming and going, honestly the costs involved are never ending, many local people are also chipping in but the costs are £00s a day as you can imagine, the heating costs alone are horrendous. This is the single worst case in the area around as it is the biggest refugee hub with for example in the middle of one night receiving 40 refugees. Currently they are overflowing and Barbara has negotiated further accommodation with a state farming institute in the next village which should give extra capacity, it’ basic but has everything that would be needed and we shall help there as necessary.
A local tourist hotel and restaurant has bought a 60 seater second hand coach and this now is being used for border pickups rather that individual cars going.
As far as the UK scheme is concerned for people offering accommodation it certainly will be very good for those refugees who want to escape completely but the ones we speak to really wish to remain close to the Ukraine border so that as soon as the war is over it is just a relatively short uncomplicated journey back to their homes. I really hope that the UK scheme will work as it is gratifying that there are so many people willing to help.
Last night I received a text from Ukraine the husband of Irina in our accommodation. He owns a parts shop and vehicle repair business or rather he did as he is now co-
I want to thank you for caring for my family, it was very painful for me to let them go but because of the situation I was forced however I am calm for them. Thank you very much for the reception, for everything that you have done. There are good people in this world. You will be blessed before the Lord God. Thank you again.
Update 19/03/2022
Thank you all for your kind and generous donations, I try to thank everyone personally but where there is no reference name on the bank transfer I cannot, so our grateful thanks are to you.
It is exactly three weeks since Barbara and I looked at each other and realised immediately that we must throw open our tourist accommodation to that first wave of refugees and at the same time motivate others to do the same. We could take more but unfortunately the main house in the accommodation is on a long term let leaving a separate suite of two en-
We had planned to go to border at Medyka on Friday for two of our ‘uests’to return home to near Lviv for a night or two before coming back with more clothes and more importantly for the girl to pick up her school books to be able to continue her online schooling which she thoroughly enjoys. However the cruise missiles launched on Lviv in the morning rather changed our plans and now we are looking towards going tomorrow with them returning on Monday with possibly two family members or friends.
In four languages around a table of six yesterday Barbara and I sat and talked with a family who had just arrived from east Ukraine with horrifying stories of war and destruction, deprivation and the cruelty of the invading Russian army with indiscriminate attacks, shooting and maiming of innocent people maybe just queuing for a loaf of bread. They are Walerian and Natasha with three children looking totally exhausted and dazed, they came from Chernihiv north-
They have also found good temporary accommodation to recover from the five day journey to Poland, even in the relative calm of west Ukraine in Lviv where they passed through staying a night they felt the tensions, people were waiting and looking to the sky, the air raid sirens going almost non stop and the city had come to a halt as people go in and out of cellars fearing an attack and which eventually came to them in the early hours of Friday morning. The family have absolutely no money at all having lost everything apart from the clothes they stand up in plus a few bits and pieces. They are completely reliant upon the goodwill of people, I gave them money from the donations we have received, you can imagine their gratefulness. Their hugs with tears in their eyes are for you all.
A friend of mine took them all clothes shopping immediately after the meeting and I’e heard today that they have been offered some permanent accommodation in Frankfurt, Germany – I think a similar scheme to Britain however they have no money for the coach ticket for the five of them to get there. Thank you again, they now have.
Putin's rally in Moscow on Friday reminded Barbara of her times in the 1970s of being forced to attend communist rallies, there was no chance to avoid going as the local commissar herded them onto transport, keeping an eye on them and reporting them if they strayed. Frightening tragic times are being repeated.
Update 23/03/2022
We have had four weeks of war in Ukraine and 2.3 million refugees have arrived in Poland, it is estimated that 0.2 million have moved further west. The refugee situation in our area has stabilised as we saw at the Krościenko border crossing there were very few refugees coming over at this tiny crossing point however that doesn’ mean that they have moved on from our immediate area as every B&B and tourist accommodation around is full and the hotel we are supporting is now providing the main meal of the day to over 50 refugees staying in other accommodations around in addition to the 60 staying in or passing through the hotel. The owners are magnificent and exhausted but most grateful for the money you have donated when we met them today.
So after all on Sunday we did not go to the infamous Medyka border crossing with the two refugees that wanted to return to Lviv but on the advice from our neighbour who is in the Polish Border Guard we went to the most southerly border crossing point in the Carpathian mountains which is in fact the nearest to us being a little over one hour’ drive away from our home. He had just come off shift before we left home and reported how quiet the crossing was with only a few cars queuing. Also on his advice after all the border protocol and customs controls we drove into Ukraine and we were able to meet up with Iryna’ husband whom I have been in contact with via text for sometime now. It was quite emotional they seeing husband and father again after three weeks and us saying a temporary farewell to them, when they will return rather depends on the war situation, if the war moves to the west of Ukraine and Lviv they certainly will be returning.
We were met with warmth and smiles from Ukrainian passport and immigration control, and the customs officers, quite unusual as I have the memory of five years ago when we went to visit Lviv then the guards were surly and deliberately delaying our checks and it took us three hours or more to clear customs and passport controls. Whereas on Sunday we managed going in to Ukraine and then back into Poland inside an hour and with a lot of chatter particularly about Putin and his cronies. The Ukrainian traffic police were joking with us about even daring to venture inside Ukraine and at one police checkpoint on the Polish side the police sergeant was very happy to practice his English and had actually been drafted in from 700 kms away on the west Polish/German border.
An explanation -
There is a very moving video produced by President Zelensky that if you haven’ seen the video it is well worth watching just one and a half minutes -
www.facebook.com/100007211555008/videos/939890546565554/
Our remit with the refugees doesn’ seem to have stopped there as I have even received a request via a Polish friend for bullet proof vests for his friends fighting in Kyiv as it seems that all regular suppliers are out of stock.
Meanwhile our weather has taken a turn for the better, typical continental we can go in a couple of days from deep winter with daytime temperatures below freezing to the warmth of the mid teens. This helps the feelings amongst the refugees enormously and today being amongst many of them we were seeing more smiles on the worn out mothers faces though the fear for their menfolk of course is very evident.
Thank you again for helping them.
Update 26/03/2022
The overall refugee situation in our area is one of stabilisation, every village has refugees staying either in private houses or in tourist accommodation. Over the hill and into the next valley from our home is the small spa town of Rymanów Zdrój with many small hotels and guesthouses all are full of refugees. After our border visit last Sunday when our nearest crossing was peaceful we hear that nothing has changed and there are few crossings by refugees there. This is mainly as there is relative peace in the west of Ukraine however the Medyka and Korczowa crossings further north continue to see a steady flow of refugees mostly going initially to Rzeszów 45 miles to north of us, on Friday and today the crossing numbers were 30,500 and estimated 29,000 respectively, hugely down on a week ago These poor people are mainly arriving in Lviv from the war torn east and then moving on to these two crossing points. Some of those do move to our area using the community transport as I touched on before but much less than previously.
However I fear that this refugee situation is short lived – the lull before the storm.
According to our nephew who lives there Rzeszow is also a city on edge. The city’ airport is now a major logistical and military hub, there are cargo planes from all over the world landing there with arms and ammunition on route to Ukraine in addition to the movement all nationalities forces. The local authorities are preparing a clear up the Cold War-
Here, we met with Katya from Kyiv and her 18 year old autistic daughter Natalia having left three sons and a husband behind who are now all in the army defending the capital. Honestly it is heart breaking, they have travelled for several days, the girl doesn’ understand what is happening and the mother is in shock, worn out and almost totally broken. To be up close and to see the tragedy first hand is incredibly moving it is hard to hold back the tears.
Like Walerian and Natasha and their three children they arrived with little more than they stand up in and no money at all. We are sorting out as we did with the others onward movement to Frankfurt which is what she wants to get away from the border. In addition to paying for food and some clothes we shall pay for the coach fares and the coach firm giving us special rates again. The Germans are doing the same as in the UK – Homes for Refugees but it is a lot less complicated to complete because no visas are necessary. Certainly the refugees we have spoken too feel that the UK is too far for an easy return once the war ends. Walerian has sent a message from Frankfurt today thanking you all most sincerely for the financial support you gave to him and his family.
On behalf of all the refugees I quote President Biden’ speech from outside Warsaw Castle this evening in his reference to Putin "For God's sake, this man cannot remain in power."
Update 30/03/2022
The refugee situation in our area has calmed, those who are here are settled into a ‘ormal’life, a routine and most are here for the long term until the war is over. Those children who have no online lessons from Ukraine are now in local schools, certainly difficult for the children and the teachers but there is some understanding of the different languages. I’ told that spoken Ukrainian is closer to Polish than to Russian though of course they use the Cyrillic alphabet, certainly the west of Ukraine parts of which were Poland pre-
However some of the refugees are moving on and their places are filled by new arrivals but unlike in the first three weeks of the war there is not the huge wave, certainly in our area anyway, so the pressure is really off us. It is now a matter of ensuring that the requirements of those here are met, of being assisted with money where needed and food. All accommodation is being given for free. The hotel I have referred to before is acting as a cookhouse for something like a 80 to 100 refugees a day for those who are accommodated in the local area and those staying in or passing through the hotel.
Another refugee we have become involved with is Tania and her three children, from young teen to 7 years old. Spare laptops from a local school have been loaned and all the children are taking online lessons from their school in Ukraine. With the help of our friends Tania has employment, not the greatest wage but she is happy to be working and earning at least enough not to rely on the donations to buy food. Meanwhile Katya and her autistic daughter are now in Frankfurt with the organisation there, they have been provided with a separate small apartment and they thank you for all the help given to them.
We have been contacted by a Protestant church pastor who is helping to run a small refugee centre in a village a few kilometres from here where funds are desperately needed to feed upwards of 30 refugees. In addition he is organising help for Kharkiv working alongside a Ukrainian church near Lviv who in turn is working with a church in Kharkiv to provide mainly food to those who have been made homeless by the constant bombardment of the city who have either sort shelter in the churches there or have moved into the surrounding countryside. The pastor here is buying the food and is planning to make another shipment next week to Lviv, he drives the transport himself and the load is transhipped there where the people from the Ukrainian church risk their lives taking the long dangerous journey to the east of Ukraine. Four days ago one transport and the driver went missing on the journey and another turned back having been machine gunned by Russian soldiers.
With all this it is strange that life goes on normally elsewhere and we can see this by the BBC News no longer headlining Ukraine. For us though it is far from a normal life we really are totally immersed in the war and the fallout. Plus we hear it, we have become completely used to the surveillance aircraft overhead and the fighters patrolling and being refuelled sometimes literally just above us.
Four million people have now left Ukraine. Will there be another refugee wave – certainly if the Russians hit the west of Ukraine where there are hundreds of thousands of homeless people from the eastern cities now in Lviv and the surrounding countryside.
Update 02/04/2022
The flow of refugees across the borders of Ukraine has fallen significantly with yesterday seeing the second lowest number of crossings since Russia invaded on the 24th February this is primarily as a result of the Russians applying their barbaric destruction to the east, with the poor people from there who are able to escape before moving to the relative safety of the western parts of Ukraine. It is estimated that more than ten million people have now fled their homes with six and a half million still in Ukraine. There is an increasing number returning to Ukraine, 421,000 via Poland since the war began and on Friday alone 15,000 crossed into Ukraine from Poland. Of course these numbers could well include those intending to join the Ukrainian army as well as civilians and our own two ‘uests’would be included in this number as we ourselves having crossed over and back again.
Certainly here everything has settled into a routine, we have been involved with moving some families from temporary accommodation in the homes of Polish families to more permanent and self contained accommodation as a realisation comes that the war is not going to be over anytime soon.
Amongst the refugees we have met Alina and her two year old son Timor plus her mother have made an impression on us. As with every refugee we have come into contact with they are extremely polite and grateful which can lead to problems; little delightful, smiling and happy Timor is given sweets and chocolate wherever they go but he is becoming intolerant to certain foods with the allergy showing by his rosy cheeks but how does his mother stop people doting over her son in these circumstances. We do hope that more of the refugees will get to Britain where they can experience also the compassion there as they have found in Polish homes.
The mother and daughter who were with us for almost three weeks are settled back in their home south of Lviv where thankfully it is far from war. We are often in contact with them and the husband Andriy, who had remained in Ukraine whilst they were here is even telephoning us to talk of the family and how the war is affecting him. He’ made us promise that as soon as the war is over we must visit them. An incredible friendship that built up so quickly in the time that Irina and Nastya were here with us.
These are the good stories but we also hear first hand of the terrible, brutal and dehumanising treatment that other poor refugees have had to endure, they are heart rending.
As for Pastor Michał’s mission he is hopeful that his next transport with food will leave on Friday to Lviv transhipped thence on to Kharkiv. These photographs are from two weeks ago firstly here and then in Lviv:-
His principle is to receive a list of items required by the church mission in Kharkiv so that only items needed are transported and the use of small vehicles lessens the exposure to attack. A thousand kilometre journey avoiding as much as possible Russian controlled areas, these are committed brave people.
We would thank you all again, your donations are really helping these lost and homeless people and for those who have anonymously donated whom we have been unable to acknowledge personally, thank you.
Update 06/04/2022
As often happens one act of giving leads to another and now we have been made aware of the needs of the people of the Pentecostal church in the ski lift village at the head of our valley who have begun taking in the poorest of refugees from the east of Ukraine through a contact in the church who until the war in 2014 lived in the Donbas region and since moved to central Ukraine. Through the Pentecostal organisation they have now begun sending refugees to this village and the other village up the valley from us. We have been visiting and now with the season over, though on our latest visit there was snow on the ground and it was snowing heavily, the tourist accommodations have been turned over to refugees and in addition they are utilising the ski lift restaurant as a central feeding place for the main meal of the day for around 40 persons. Many have very little money and so in addition to the central feeding we shall supply some food to supplement that already donated for the other meals that they can cook for themselves.
At the same time we continue to support the free meals provided in the hotel in the spa town of Rymanów Zdroj where there are more than 60 people coming for the main meal of the day and we continue to monitor the various other establishments that we have been involved with for the past five weeks. Should there be a particular need then we can help.
The ski lift village name is Puławy and as with the other village Wisłoczek is an upland farming community with the main production being milk from cows on the high pastures above 500 metres. The villages were repopulated by Czech Silesians in 1969 after the original population of Łemko people was forcibly relocated after the war in 1946. Both villages have the religion of two trends of the Pentecostal movement. Over the years I have had several students for my English conversation classes from both and two or three of whom from Wisłoczek I have kept in contact with, so very quickly I found out that they had just taken in a family group of 12 persons passed to them by the Pentecostal church in Kyiv.
Aleksander and Tanja and their six children, two of whom a 19 and 17 year old have advanced autism and learning difficulties and needing to be supervised round the clock. There is also the sister in law, Lena and her daughter Dasza plus two older women, an aunt and grandmother. They arrived squashed into one VW people carrier from just north of Kyiv where they had previously lived in a block of flats but they were telling that they had moved to a better area where they had bought a house and were redecorating it including erecting a high fence around the house to stop the 17 year old from escaping. They had lived there for only two months and had to escape leaving everything behind as the Russian army arrived, they believe now that their home is totally destroyed. They can speak of this with absolutely no emotion. Traumatised.
The journey across Ukraine had been difficult and dangerous and they finally arrived in Lviv where they rested for some days before moving on and eventually arriving here however Lena’ husband who had driven them across Ukraine and had medical documents to state that he was released from military service was not allowed to cross the border as the documents were insufficient to classify him as unfit for service.
For the moment the family group is being housed in two holiday cottages in a small holiday complex two kilometres from our village, these are being provided free of charge but difficulties arise towards the end of April as bookings for these cottages are already made by holiday makers. For the moment Aleksander is to be offered a labouring job in the complex and Lena is likely to be offered a job as an interpreter in the local primary school where there are now many Ukrainian children. Indeed their own will be going to this school. At least then they would be happier earning some money and not totally relying on the kindness of people as they have little more than what they stand up in and no money.
We are also going to part fund another food delivery by van to the eastern part of Ukraine similar to the one I mentioned in the last update. The food will be specifically for the needs of babies and small children bought at cost price from a supermarket in our nearest small town. This supermarket is also providing coupons for Aleksander and his family for free food.
Everyone is preparing now for the next wave of refugees as the war intensifies in the Donbas region, already we hear of people leaving that area and heading to the relative safety of the west of Ukraine but this means that towns such as Lviv will not be able to cope as already there are too many refugees there which is badly stretching resources. We are prepared.
Update 09/04/2022
Just briefly we turn our attention away from the immediate area as we hear of the plight of one particular family from the thousands who are affected over the border from us in Ukraine. With the news that citizens of the towns in the east of Ukraine are being advised to flee their homes ahead of a Russian onslaught hundreds of thousands of people are descending upon the west particularly the Lviv area. This part of Ukraine is already over populated by fleeing people and the situation is about to get a whole lot worse. To leave is a very big step for many people, an unknown world, a different language, different society so the alternative is to stay in the country of birth, Ukraine.
A relative of one of our friends moved to Poland from Ukraine a few years ago but his family stayed in Ukraine. The family lives in Mukachevo which is about 200 kms by road via Slovakia from us, they took 14 people to their house soon after the war had started and there remain 10 there at this moment and like so many places in Ukraine's west they are literally sleeping on the floor in the house as there is no other accommodation. Those people came from Donetsk and Mariupol before the devastation started fearing the worst. For the past weeks the family has been completely supporting them and didn’t need any money at the beginning however they were using their savings and now these are depleted if not used up completely and they seek help both financially and for products that they cannot now source in Ukraine, particularly baby products which have become increasingly scarce. The intention is firstly to send to them money to satisfy the immediate needs and then to take them those items probably by a private car.
The special delivery from the Pentecostal fellowship in Wisłoczek was loaded and departed on Thursday and they have meet up with another transport from central Poland bound for a church in central Ukraine. As mentioned before smaller transports are being used which are less likely to be targeted by airstrikes. This is loading:-
Meanwhile Pastor Michał arrived in Lviv on Friday and cross loaded his cargo which is now on its away to Kharkiv. Pastor Vitaly from the church in Lviv sent a message of grateful thanks to us for your contribution towards the cost of the food in the transport.
More news of Aleksander and family. The five children are now in the closest school and they have free access to the local community school bus service. The two autistic children have started in a special school in our nearest small town 14 kms away from them and daily transport is being provided for free. Tanja, the mother has been accepted as a special needs teacher there in a paid teaching post. The accommodation in the holiday cottage complex is guaranteed now to the end of May and the other female adults are to be employed in the restaurant kitchen once the season starts. Their wish is to stay here until the war is over and they are very grateful for the money you have given them, they are using it to buy clothes and specialist food items for the two autistic children. Their thanks is warm and heartfelt. This war is a tragedy.
In addition to the money provided to Puławy to help towards the cost of feeding the main meal to the refugees there we are now helping out with food parcels of about £00 each to help them for their breakfasts and supper meals plus snacks and sweets for the children. Each food parcel is being prepared at cost price by Barbara’ elder sister who owns and runs the village shop here, at first these poor people did not want to take any of the food we delivered, they are proud and even though they have nothing they find it difficult to accept charity. It was the children’ persuasion in wanting the chocolate and sweets that finally convinced them to accept your gifts and there were tears of thanks.
There is even more air activity directly overhead yesterday and today particularly the RAF surveillance aircraft and the RAF and USAF refuelling tankers it really is like rolling thunder at times.
Today Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia, the largest country in the world by area, had attacked his nation, Ukraine, the largest country in the world by courage.
Update 13/04/2022
I don’ normally comment as to where donations come from or how they are derived but at the weekend a very strange sum arrived in my notifications from the son of an Army friend of years ago, he held a lunchtime party for the Grand National and also to celebrate his wife’ birthday, people kindly gave their sweepstake winnings and actual winnings to our refugees fund. And we have heard from a couple who are friends of friends of friends who will open their wild flower meadow to the public in May to raise further funds for the refugees. The kindness shown in every way is wonderful.
We went to a folk evening in the hotel in the small spa town of Rymanów Zdroj that we have been supporting, they were raising money to help towards the cost of the meals they provide everyday with an audience made up predominately with the patients at one of the sanatoriums there. There was a local folk trio playing and singing traditional songs from the mountains around here. The money raised and as with your donations will help upwards of 60 people a day being provided with a wholesome main meal. Imagine that you are in a crowded pub restaurant; the noise of people’ chatter, the laughter, the clatter of dishes, children running about and annoying you, well that is exactly the same as this restaurant except these people have left their homes, their husbands and their life behind in war torn Ukraine. They have little idea who is supporting them but they are immensely grateful, we honestly feel humbled seeing them.
Pastor Michał (left) is returned from Ukraine with his thanks to add to those of Pastor Vitaly who is now en route to Kharkiv – a very dedicated and extremely brave young man. We are contemplating further financial assistance both for the supply of food to Kharkiv but also help towards the cost of a second hand vehicle to replace the vehicle that has had to be abandoned as it was riddled with bullets on a return journey to Lviv, regrettably another pastor was killed in the incident. I shall have some photographs and film soon of the food that you have provided being handed out in Kharkiv.
We are sending an additional mail following this with photographs and a video of Aleksander and family in the holiday cottage complex up the road from us, the mail might take a while to download dependant upon the connection speed. We are totally against taking photographs of the refugees ever since our first encounter with them in the chaotic and enormously distressing reception centre on the border just after the war started. However Aleksander insisted that he would take photographs as a thank you for the help that is being provided for them, they have nothing left in Ukraine, their old apartment and the newer house destroyed. We find it hard to believe that they can be as happy as they are, outwardly anyway.
The video has been put together by a friend of ours with the full permission of the family and the end title reads:-
Our large family, Mum, Dad and 6 children. Two older sons have disabilities.
With us is our extended family which includes grandmother,
the wife of the brother of the husband and daughter and the sister Ira.
We are from Kyiv.
Thank you to the Poles for the shelter of our large family.
May the lord bless all who have a big heart and help those like us.
We feel your love!
As Spring slowly arrives here there is hope amongst the refugees we meet but also there is the knowledge that their lives will never be the same, many have lost everything.
We have to thank those who have given money and whom we cannot trace the name to thank personally and also those who have donated anonymously we really are most grateful and thank you for your kindness.
Easter Wishes
