UKRAINIAN FAITH

When Russia declared war on Ukraine in the guise of a ‘special operation’ little did we know that 4 years on we would still be fundraising to help those in desperate need in this war torn country.  What we have been managing to achieve in Ukraine by just the two of us even surprises us.

Ukraine has been under even stronger attacks from the Russian army over this time and in many villages and towns throughout this country many people are desperately still trying to manage normal everyday life which in many cases can only be described as a mere existence. Homes have been destroyed and loved ones killed or injured and yet the resilience of the Ukrainian people remains unbelievably strong. It is hard to imagine what keeps these people so strong, an inner strength that goes above and beyond what most people here in England would find hard to comprehend. 

Their faith in God is unwavering no matter what hardship they endure. No matter where you travel within Ukraine to attend a church service you will find it almost impossible to find an empty seat. The sense of trusting and believing in God amongst the people is almost overwhelming. The same can be said for the Peoples Church of Odesa where Nigel and I attend whenever possible.  

This church became a cornerstone for those in need from day one of the war and today it still is. People in Odesa can make their way here at designated times to collect much needed supplies of food, clothes, hygiene products etc to name a few items. Nigel and I have delivered items of humanitarian aid there many times in the past and we will continue to do so as long as there is a need. 

Since our return to the Isle of Wight from our 2024 mission we have not been idle on the fundraising front or sending money to where it is needed most. Funds have been sent to the 5 animal shelters to help with the feeding of the animals under their care. We try to help at least two per month or as and when we can raise the money along with other worthwhile causes. 

Fundraising for Ukraine has now become even more difficult as there is so little media attention centered on this country since the catastrophic plight of the Palestinians took center stage but that does not deter us from doing what we can, where we can.

We stage events such as Karaoke nights, car boot sales, coffee mornings and the occasional Supermarket tin shaking collection in order to keep the funds coming in, added into this by putting a plea out on social media asking for monetary donations. 

We are extremely gratified that here are still people, some within the congregation of Holy Trinity Church Bembridge that regularly make generous monetary donations, without these we would have really struggled to achieve even half of what we have over the past 4 years. 

What we have achieved over the past 18 months. 

2024 was for us a very humbling year when we were able to deliver help in more ways than we could have even hoped for. With funds donated to us by Holy Trinity Church an orphanage was helped to repair a large area of roof before the winter months returned, a motorbike was bought for our Ukrainian friend Viktor in Kherson to enable him to carry on his work helping 38 elderly/disabled people who are unable to leave their homes for various reasons, the main one having nowhere else to go and having a strong desire to remain in their own homes.

From every one of them without exception when asked “why do you not leave Kherson for a safer place” the answer is the same…..they were born in Kherson and will die in Kherson. These elderly people really have a very tough time, they all live in blocks of apartments, many having to rely on humanitarian aid volunteers delivering much needed supplies as they live on high levels within their apartment blocks unable to set foot outside of their homes. 

With the Russians continually targeting the electricity power plants and sub stations meant that very often there was no heating, lights or water in their homes for days. Without electricity the water supply cannot be pumped so we felt compelled to help ease this situation by putting out an appeal on social media for donations to purchase an inverter generator which was to cost £489, we could cover some the cost ourselves from our Ukraine fund but not all of it as we still needed money in the bank to send to others needing our help. 

Almost immediately a friend who had donated generators in the past and helped in so many other ways came forward and generously donated £200, we were able to free up the rest. He saved the day. 

Just as an added insight into Viktors life in Kherson, we received a message from him on January 21st saying that Kherson had been heavily shelled from close range and a large area of his apartment block roof was severely damaged, thank goodness he was safe, there were casualties and wounded and also lots of buildings destroyed not far from his apartment.

His brother was hit by explosives dropped from a drone a few days later and to cap it off his brother-in-law was killed whilst serving on the front line……still Viktor holds his faith in God. A few weeks later Viktors brother was targeted by Russian drones again but this time he lost his life. There were no funds to help Viktor with his brother’s funeral but once again Holy Trinity Church came to the rescue with a donation of £1,000 which enabled all funeral expenses and cover the added expense of Viktors brother’s body having to be taken from the mortuary in Kherson some 4 hours by road to a crematorium in Odesa. According to some religious beliefs in Ukraine cremation is never the first choice of any Ukrainian as for a few days after death the soul remains on this earth connected to the deceased which cannot happen with cremation.  

The Animal Shelters. 
Over the weeks since our return from Ukraine in 2024 we have received many requests for help from the 5 unregistered animal shelters that we try to support. These shelters were set up by just ordinary people, they have no regular source of income and we have carried out many deliveries of animal feed, paid veterinary fees and in some cases even helped to pay towards a shelters rent arrears. When we are not on the ground in Ukraine we are able to transfer funds when necessary via PayPal.   

Funds were low after the 2024 autumn humanitarian mission and so it was imperative that fundraising was restarted as soon as possible on return to the Island to be able to react to any call for help. Sometimes it is a juggling act to decide which shelter should be helped first according to the amount of funds available so there is always disappointment when help has to be refused to a shelter for a while until more private donations are received or a fundraising event has brought in some money. None of what we achieve could be possible if it were not for the ‘TEAM’ of two ( ourselves Nigel and Jan) 

Fundraising has continued to become more and more difficult as the war in Ukraine goes on but through holding raffles, music nights, coffee mornings etc and using the GoFundMe, PayPal and Facebook platforms there is always some way of boosting funds to enable the shelters to be helped. Somehow the shelters do survive but in some cases the question is how much longer. 

Nigel returned to Ukraine again in February 2025 this time on his own, no Jan as she needed to remain home on the Isle of Wight to continue fundraising to be able to send money out to Nigel in Ukraine. where he once again delivered food to the animal shelters and travelled to Kherson to see Viktor and to deliver much needed supplies to the 38 elderly residents. Even though he has been in areas before where there were Russian drones and air bombs being dropped quite close, this time it really brought home to him how dangerous a place Kherson really is and he was really glad to leave there and return to Odesa.  



THE NEXT UKRAINE HUMANITARIAN MISSION. 
Our next mission into Ukraine is however being planned to be somewhat different to those in the past. The aim is to concentrate on the military side of humanitarian aid. Up and down the 1,200kms of the front lines Ukrainian soldiers are in need of camouflage nets, chest closure kits, bandages, pain killers, tourniquets etc as these necessary items are in extremely short supply and without the basics to save life the front line is a desperate place. 

Our aim is to gather together donations of basic medical supplies to enable us to deliver them to front line troops. The reasoning behind this change of mission direction is simple. Without the Ukrainian army having help then all hope is lost to keep the Russian hoards at bay. If the front lines fail then Ukraine falls and possibly the rest of Europe could soon become the next Russian target. 

Plans are in motion for new fundraising events to raise funds to enable us to purchase supplies whilst in Ukraine instead of travelling with a full van load from England. 

There is also now a chance to work alongside a charity based in the New Forest that can deliver any Isle of Wight donated items into Ukraine for us to pick up once across the border, a saving on van fuel and minimizing the paperwork needed at the border crossings. 

Now all that is needed are the funds to make this next mission happen 

If you would like to support our upcoming mission to Ukraine, donations can be made directly to Nigel or Jan using the bank details below: 

Nigel J Watson
Sort code: 77 09 20  
Acc no: 22223168   
Barclays 

J R Dyer   
Sort code:20 60 55 
Acc no: 50343927 
Lloyds Bank  

PayPal: jandyer93@gmail.com