Church buys generator for Ukraine care home

After several months of fundraising, Banchory Ternan West Church in northeast Scotland raised sufficient money to buy a three-phase diesel generator for an old folk’s home in Ukraine’s Belotserkovsky district, 110kms from Kyiv. It will be used to provide light, cook and make bread in the electric ovens, which have lain dormant since power was disrupted over a year ago.

While there was no electricity, all the cooking and baking for the 124 elderly, disabled and mentally ill residents had to rely on a wood burning stove and oven located outside the main block under a temporary shelter.

The home is one of six institutions in the Kyiv region whose electricity supply was destroyed by Russian missiles, and which were identified by a Ukrainian member of the Banchory church, Halyna Parusova, a notary from Kyiv.

Halyna liaised with professional colleagues, Yakymenko Lesya, Karina Derum and Anna Vovk, all from the Notary Chamber of Ukraine, to identify establishments serving the needs of young children or elderly and disabled and which had no electrical power. They contacted each organisation to find out their requirements.

Halyna said: “Many residents in the home had been hurriedly evacuated in crowded buses from their homes in occupied territories or territories where hostilities were still active.

“We were shown round the building which accommodated people of all ages with mental disorders. It was hard to look at them.

“Many residents occupy themselves by growing vegetables and flowers in the garden.

“After talking with the staff and residents, I left with a clear impression that these people maintain their dignity and continue to help those in the most difficult situation.”

Project manager, Don Morrison, added: “Without the help of Halyna and her colleagues, we would not have managed to establish the needs, find a reliable local supplier and arrange delivery and payment.

“Apart from the language barrier and the fact that Ukraine is under constant attack from the Russian invaders, it has not been the easiest transaction to organise. The unfamiliar protocol for doing business and the difficulty of transferring funds have made the project especially challenging. However, our generous donors had put their faith in us to successfully deliver and we could not let them down.

“Seeing the generator in action and the first loaves coming out of the oven has been enormously gratifying. In the greater scheme of this tragic conflict, this is an insignificant achievement but, to the residents and staff of the home, it not only represents a major improvement in the quality of their lives, but gives them the reassurance that they will have power as they transition from summer back into a hard, cold winter. It also gives them comfort in the knowledge they are not forgotten.

“The Ukraine Support Group of the Banchory West Church is indebted to the generosity of many folk, from all across the UK, who have donated to the fund.

“More money is still needed, however,” he added, “As there are still another five institutions for which we should like to purchase generators, including the social and psychological rehabilitation centre for children in Pereyaslav, a children’s health institution in Tstbivska and a children’s rehabilitation centre in Obukhov district.”

Donations can be made online at www.peoplesfundraising.com/donation/power-to-ukraine