Farmers working the land beside war trenches… missiles darting across the sky – these were among the scenes witnessed by two Maltese volunteers who were in Ukraine last week to help drop off six tons of food supplies to the war-torn country.
“We made it to the city of Mykolayiv, dispatched the food and supplies and got an even closer look at the horrors of this war,” Douglas Barbaro Sant, one of the volunteers, said.
Mykolayiv is a city which was until recently home to nearly half a million people. It is now a war zone. All the volunteers could see were soldiers and civilian men and very few women and no sign of children. The few men and women they saw were mostly elderly.
“They are shelled on a daily basis and are living through a war and yet they have resilience and strength which we can only envy,” he added.
Douglas and his cousin Lorna Borg were in Ukraine for the second time since Russia started the war on Ukraine in February.
They first went there last month when they spent two weeks helping to build a centre to house Ukrainian refugees in neighbouring Moldova. They also helped deliver food into Ukraine and helped Ukrainians evacuate back to Moldova.
It all started when Lorna, a nurse, was contacted by a friend who was doing humanitarian work in Moldova as a doctor. She invited her to join and, when she spoke to Douglas, who works in event management, they decided to head off to Moldova where they found the community centre Dancu Tabita, run by a Baptiste Church, that was welcoming Ukrainian refugees.
They are shelled on a daily basis and are living through a war and yet they have resilience and strength which we can only envy
Collecting funds from family and friends, they helped Dancu Tabita expand the centre to house more Ukrainian refugees crossing the border. The works included improving the living quarters and increasing the capacity to house up to 120 people from the previous 40.
Two weeks after returning to Malta, the cousins set off again to check on the progress of the works and to help raise more funds. They estimate the house needs about €1,000 per day to house some 100 residents.
During their four-day trip they also bought some six tons of provisions – mainly rice, pasta, oats, canned foods, flour, oil, cookies, sugar and salt – and transported them in three vans to food depots run by volunteers in Mykolayiv and Odessa in Ukraine, which they entered through the Palanca border.
“I have been told that what we are doing is just a drop in the ocean. However, for the people we are reaching out to, that drop is the ocean,” said Douglas.
In Moldova, the two met many Ukrainians who had made the difficult decision to leave their country.
“Four women at the centre shared with us their story of why they find themselves there. Their yearning to be home was palpable but the need for their children’s safety was dominant… Sadly, we refer to these people as ‘refugees’. Let’s not forget that they are people with their own unique experience,” Lorna said.
Douglas and Lorna are collecting funds to secure the long-term existence of the Dancu Tabita centre, as well as ensure more food drops and evacuations from Ukraine.
Anyone wishing to donate may do so on the following accounts: Bank of Valletta − MT32VALL22 013000000040025340103 − Swift code: VALLMTMTXXX. Or Revolut or BOV mobile to Lorna +356 9945 8770 or Douglas +356 9929 7975.