By: Kathy Mueller, senior communications advisor
Canadian Kathy Mueller is currently working with the International Federation of Red Cross Societies as communications coordinator for the Ukraine humanitarian crisis.
They arrive at the border between Ukraine and Slovakia exhausted after two or three days of travelling. Some come by car. Many others are on foot, carrying bags, dragging suitcases. There are women and there are children – many, many children. The few men in the line up tend to be older.
Of the millions who have left Ukraine due to the ongoing conflict, half are children. The youngsters help the weary and worried adults carry their few precious belongings. They wear backpacks with teddy bears attached. One little girl carries her own bag of diapers. While some little ones cling to their mothers with all the strength their tiny hands can muster, older ones run about, excited about the adventure they have been told they are on. Their mothers scramble to corral them.
People come to this border at Uzhhorod, all hours of the day and night. Volunteers with the Ukrainian Red Cross greet them. They provide information, food, hot drinks, clothing, and blankets. Decked out in their vibrant red emergency uniforms, they help carry people’s belongings up to the border crossing. Some need wheelchairs and the volunteers jump up to help. Once they cross the border, they will be welcomed by volunteers from the Slovak Red Cross.
Olexander Bodnar, pictured left, is the 23-year-old man who heads up the volunteer team for the Ukrainian Red Cross in Uzhhorod, at the country’s western border. Twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, the team takes shifts at this crossing.
“My team are the most wonderful people on the earth,” he says. “We have so many kind people who have joined us. We have 130 volunteers who have signed up since the conflict began. Many are nurses and doctors.”
Medical skills are highly valued. In a newly constructed building, the Red Cross has set up a small clinic, stocked with things like baby food and diapers. Cots line one side of the clinic as a place for weary travellers to rest, if only for a little while. It is here that the volunteers perform basic first aid.
Many of the older people complain of rising blood pressure. Trained volunteers check it and tell me that most of the time, it’s fine. They are under extreme stress, and some experience panic attacks – a normal reaction during an abnormal event.
Olexander shares a story about an older woman who was leaving her beloved country with her husband, who had just had surgery.
“She fell to her knees and asked God to protect her country. She said ‘My dear Ukraine, please forgive me. I don’t want to leave you, but I must.’” Tears filled Olexander’s eyes as he helped the couple approach the border crossing.
The Canadian Red Cross has already contributed $82.5 million to the International Red Cross response to provide critical humanitarian assistance to those affected by the conflict. In addition, the Canadian Red Cross has sent emergency relief items, such as blankets, tarps and cooking supplies to the region to support those affected.
People living in Canada who wish to help are encouraged to donate to the Ukraine Humanitarian Crisis Appeal, online at www.redcross.ca, by calling 1-800-418-1111, or by texting UKRAINE to 20222 to donate $10.
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