Hythe Life_Spring_2022.qxp_Layout 1 27/04/2022 10:58 Page 60
People Power: Kent to Kyiv in 60 days
by Charlie Connolly
The Russian invasion of Ukraine that we are observing from afar is harrowing. War crimes are being committed on a daily basis against innocent people. We are lucky not to be living this nightmare first hand and can turn off the images, the sounds - the friendly, warm people of Ukraine do not deserve this. When events were unfolding around Ukraine, Charlie and her Aunt Brenda asked Charlie’s uncle Archie (Russian by birth and a long-term resident of his favoured city Kyiv) to leave, to come back and be safe in the UK. He refused. He wanted to stay, to defend his country and to fight for his way of life. His choice continues to scare Charlie but she is incredibly proud of him. He is still there trying to do what he can. It turns out he has been supporting a cause very important to him; Kyiv’s Children’s Cardiology surgery centre. He has been scouring the city for basic supplies for the centre, which is currently operating out of a basement where babies, some just a few weeks old, are being cared for.
We read, listen and watch the events unfold and continue to feel helpless but Charlie and her friends feel that we can all do something. We can help by raising money for the humanitarian organisations that are on the ground in Ukraine. The Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal run by the British Red Cross is well established and is providing food, water, shelter and medical assistance. To raise funds, Charlie, her wife Jacqui and 2 amazing friends Emma and Bex Pope (along with their dogs) plan to virtually cover the equivalent distance to Kyiv from Saltwood Green in Kent. They will walk, cycle, run and swim the 1,434 miles (averaging 25 miles daily) in 60 days - around their safe place in the garden of England. They hope you will support them by sponsoring them for each mile of their journey.
60 | www.hythelife.org.uk
You can follow their progress via their Facebook group ‘People Power: Kent 2 Kyiv in 60 days’. https://m.facebook.com/groups/5082928605 078692/?ref=group_browse You can donate via their Just Giving page: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/ken t2kyiv60
Or be down with the kids and use this QR code to donate:
Thank you and Slava Ukraini! Charlie, Jacqui, Emma and Bex (along with Rufus and Daisy!)
