In response to the growing humanitarian crisis in Ukraine, local resident Mr Phill Heaney (shown in the picture above) is coordinating the collection of essential items for transport to Ukraine.  Through regular posts on social media, he is asking for specific items most in need. Residents have rallied to the call and have arranged to deliver this aid to his place of work at Ash Vale Tyres, where he is the branch manager.  Mr Heaney has spoken to Ash Parish News, he first wanted to say a big thank you to everyone who has donated and that he’s been overwhelmed by the response received so far. He explained that he is not always at Ash Vale Tyres every day and requests anyone who donates to contact him first to confirm when he is there. The donations are loaded directly into his vehicle, which are sent to Ukrain as frequently as 2- 3 times a week. This is being achieved by a network of volunteers including expatriate Ukrainians. He explained that the most recent donations had been destined for Lviv (a western city close to the board of Poland), but where was then redirected to a charity centre in Kiev itself to ensure it got to exactly where it’s most needed as quickly as possible.

Mr Heaney then showed Ash Parish News a letter that was included within a recent donation made by a young resident. It reads; “Dear Ukrain, I hope you are safe and I gave you my clothes because you deserve it love you. Love Ella from UK. Be safe ♥.”

Financial donations

If you wish or are able to donate money, there are a number of charities providing humanitarian relief in Ukraine, including but not limited to;

• Donate to the Disasters Emergency Committee Ukraine Appeal
• Ukraine Crisis Appeal | British Red Cross
• British Ukrainian Aid

If you would like more information about what you can do to help, please visit https://www.gov.uk/government/news/ukraine-what-you-can-do-to-help