Ukrainians living in Darlington have made a plea for people to continue supporting the war effort amid a decline in donations.
Nathan Rimmer and Becky Freeman are preparing for their fourth trip to the war-torn country with a van full of food, medical supplies and other equipment.
But while their van filled up within a few days when they did their first trip at the start of the conflict, this time it has been a struggle to get enough donations.
The pair, who are best friends and work as ecologists, live in Stafford but were in Darlington on Saturday as it is Nathan’s home town and they are desperate to get the supplies they need.
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Nathan, 33, said: “Everyone is forgetting about it. People seem to think it has gone away but it’s worse than ever.
“If people want to donate financially or with physical donations it is much appreciated.”
Becky, 34, said: “When we talk to people we get the same response, ‘oh, we’ve already donated’. But the war is still going on and it is going to be for a while. All the stuff we took the first time has been used.
"The first time we went over no-one really noticed our van because there were so many. But the last time so many people were acknowledging us and waving at us because they don’t see them as much. We only saw one other small convoy.
“It has really tailed off.”
Becky and Nathan were overseeing a collection point in the Market Square on Saturday, while Catherine Goodwin, from St Thomas Aquinas RC church, in North Road, had another drop-of there.
The donations collected on Saturday will be taken to Kyiv, and from there to eastern Ukraine, with food destined for soldiers fighting there.
Elena Setter, who has been living in the UK for about six years and moved to Darlington last September, was helping with the collection.
She said: “It was so horrible when this all started. I couldn’t sleep for the first week at all, I was watching news 24 hours a day. I would be trying to speak to my family. They were living in the basement.
“It was horrible. They were close to Kyiv and they didn’t know whether they would be alive the next day. The house was damaged but they have moved to my sister in Italy. Since then a rocket hit the house which has destroyed one of the floors. It’s good no-one died. If anyone had been in the house it would have been another story.
“My grandmum really wants to go back home but it is not safe.”
She added: “So many people are dying every day. It’s ridiculous. They need help so much.”
She has been helping with some of the refugees from Ukraine now living in Darlington.
“When we started I didn’t know anyone from Ukraine and now I know so many,” she added. “We have started to find each other and we’re trying to find and help refugees to help them get support. It’s difficult for them to come from Ukraine and see people having a normal life because life is not normal for them yet.”
Lena Rusa, who was there with her daughter Adele, was also supporting the effort. Lena, who works in financial services, has been living here for about 13 and has recently been volunteering with schools to help with the children who cannot speak English.
“What these guys are doing is great,” she said. “The war is still going on.
“I brought my mum here at the end of March but my brother is still over there.
“People aren’t interested anymore. You can’t keep watching something like that and now people have more to worry about with gas prices going up. But people are still dying over there.
“Every little helps. Even one tin of food might save someone’s life. We are very grateful for anything and to these guys who are doing something.”
Becky and Nathan are planning to take the van to Kyiv on July 15.
Their previous trips have been to refugee centres in Poland, three orphanages in Ukraine and at the Medyka border.
Becky said: “Every trip is an emotional rollercoaster. It’s really sad. We went to an orphanage and there were 30 kids from Mariupol. You can see it in their eyes. It’s heart-breaking.
“We met a girl with her mum and grandmother and they had two bags between them that were smaller than the ones we had for two weeks. That’s there life. We met one woman who had her dog and that was the only thing she had.”
Nathan added: “It’s strange going over there because on the roads you can see the sandbags and bunkers and armed soldiers on the bridges. Then you get into the villages and it’s no different from Darlington. There are families on the green and music playing.”
To donate to their trip, visit www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/medical-aid-to-ukraine
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