Ukraine Support Update
Last year the RGS community raised over £10,000 in a short space of time in our Ukraine Appeal. In order to maximise the impact of this support on the ground, staff at the School linked up with a charity that provided shelter, medical help and education to disabled children and displaced families fleeing Ukraine. Three members of the RGS Support Staff volunteered to make the 1,750 mile journey out to the Ukraine border in May 2022 to ensure that the right items could be purchased and the funds raised could be put to good use directly where it was needed.
Local car company PJ Nicholls Ltd supported the expedition by generously providing a fully insured SsangYong Musso Saracen Pick-Up vehicle for the trip. The School would like to thank Mr Nicholls again for this superb support which made the trip possible.
The three staff, Mr Steve Bradley, Mr Keith Breese and Mr Paul Green, were overwhelmed by the experience of being able to help people in their time of great need. They were able to work with the volunteer charity staff to choose exactly the items needed to support the refugees, and keep the charity hostel operational. They ensured every item purchased would make a difference for refugees staying there.
Recently, the Star of Hope Foundation provided an update on the situation at the Romanian border with Ukraine, where the RGS team had delivered aid twelve months ago. The Foundation continues to provide assistance to refugees who cross the border because of the war. They still have 40 refugees living in their centres in Dorohoi and Suceava, and they have provided accommodation, food, hygiene items, transportation, educational services for children, psychological support, medical intervention, medication, support in finding a job, and integration into work. The Foundation is one of only two organisations continuing to assist the refugees. Star of Hope Foundation hopes to continue to provide refugees with assistance in their centres. They told us just how grateful they continue to be for the support they received from the RGS community and how the items they were able to buy back then continue to make a difference to children’s lives now.
