Polish Rotary Appeal for Support to Ukrainian Refugees

Rotary North East Support via Middlesbrough Erimus

May 2022 Update

If you are able and want to support then please leave a donation here

A message from Inowroclaw Rotary President, Rafał Mikołajewski:

“In these difficult times, we are very grateful for all of the donations from your Clubs in aid of the work of Rotary in Poland to support the Ukrainian people”

Background (as April update)

• Middlesbrough Erimus Rotary is “twinned” with three Mainland European Clubs:
  • Groningen West, Netherlands
  • Limburg, Germany
  • Inowroclaw, Poland

Members from the four Clubs usually meet up annually for a “twinning weekend”

The last meeting, due to Covid, was in June 2019 in
Inowroclaw

At each meeting, the host Club proposes an
International project which, subject to approval,
receives 1000 euros from each Club. Often, projects also benefit from District grants.

The 2019 project, nominated by Inowroclaw, was to supply equipment to a special school in Belarus

Inowroclaw contacted “twinned” Clubs, three days after the start of the War, to request support for Polish Rotary as it sought to help refugees arriving from Ukraine

Erimus immediately allocated more than £1000 of Club charity funds to the appeal and members added
personal donations.

Up to 23 May Middlesbrough Erimus has sent £37,780 to the
    Polish Rotary appeal on behalf of Rotary North East (District
    1030) Clubs and their many supporters.

POLISH ROTARY RESPONSE

(FEBRUARY/MARCH)

• Inowroclaw began paying for refugee children to attend a local kindergarten
• Clothing was purchased for refugees arriving in the region, many of whom had
  only the contents of a rucksack or small suitcase
• Electrical equipment was purchased for use by refugees who were being housed
  in the Inowroclaw region

April

13-22 April – Delivery of Clothes and Medical Kit

Boxes taken to Zamosc, then on to Donetsk and Kharkiv in East Ukraine via Lviv

May

17 May – Transfer of Goods for Zhytomyr

Inowroclaw Rotary delivered directly to the City of Zhytomyr*:

• 

  Clothes,

• Medical kits
• Food (flour, raisins….)

* Zhytomyr is located to the West of Kyiv and is the main centre of Polish population in Ukraine

19 May – Unloading in Zhytomyr

Boxes all marked up with Euro Clubs’ logos

Goods taken on to front line cities of Zaporozhye and Kharkiv in Eastern Ukraine

FURTHER ACTIONS PLANNED BY INOWROCLAW ROTARY

• Inowroclaw will continue to purchase and supply materials to support specific needs of Ukrainian refugees and those who have not left the country but are having to survive in areas that have been devastated by the War. They, and other agencies, have stressed the value of receiving cash that can be spent in Poland to meet the most pressing needs. Current priorities in Ukraine are medical equipment and canned food. It is planned to supply medical kits and hygienic materials to a Polish Rotarian who is a neuro surgeon and has moved to Lviv to provide support.
• Many children are suffering trauma because of events witnessed, loss of loved ones and the massive disruption to their lives. Inowroclaw is still seeking to identify and fund psychological support for refugees in their region but sourcing experts who speak Ukrainian is proving difficult.
• For refugees arriving in the Inowroclaw region, clothing and basic household equipment will continue to be sourced and funded where necessary.

A NOTE FROM MIDDLESBROUGH ERIMUS

We are continuing to meet on Zoom with Inowroclaw Rotary and our Euro partners in Germany and the Netherlands on most Monday evenings to get progress updates

On two occasions, Ukrainian refugees have been invited along to talk about their experiences. Return to the Ukraine is considered unlikely by some because of the extent of the devastation to their homes and cities.

Many refugees still have contact with relatives in Eastern Ukraine or over the border in Russia.

The refugees have explained that those in Russia have found it hard to believe the extent of the
damage that has been caused, or the harm that has been wreaked on the general population

It is evident that there will be some major economic issues for Poland because of the number of
refugees and the level of support it has given to them.

It is also evident that there has been some exploitation of refugees and that some non Ukrainian refugees have sought to capitalise on the unrestricted access

• We have our “annual” Euro meeting in Limburg 10-12 June and will report back on our discussions
• Thank you to all Clubs, members and supporters for your continued generosity.